British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Tuesday Britain plans to re-open its embassy in Iran after it was closed two and a half years ago, saying it would establish a small initial presence in Tehran soon.

"I have ... now decided the circumstances are right to reopen our embassy in Tehran," Hague said in a written statement to parliament. Hague said he had discussed the matter with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Saturday.

Britain closed its Tehran embassy in late 2011 after a mob ransacked the mission.

The moves comes as the West seeks to court Iran in an attempt to battle militants in Iraq.

The United States, a close ally of Britain, has said it could launch air strikes and act jointly with its arch-enemy Iran to shore up the Iraqi government after a rampage by Sunni Islamist insurgents across Iraq that has scrambled alliances in the Middle East.

Hague has ruled out any military involvement in Iraq by Britain but said a British "operational liaison and reconnaissance team" arrived in Baghdad at the weekend and he has said that Britain will provide humanitarian assistance as needed.  -Reuters