Tehran, Oct 11, IRNA � Japan�s prime minister Shinzo Abe is preparing Tehran visit in hopes of strengthening ties, a Japanese newspaper said on Sunday.

�Japan Times� quoted informed sources as saying that the Prime Minister �is considering visiting Iran late this year.�

�Abe hopes the visit will strengthen Japan�s economic relations with Iran as Western sanctions on Tehran are set to be lifted following a historic nuclear deal it reached with the United States and five other countries in July, the sources said.

He will make a final decision on the trip after taking into account his political schedule, including work to draw up the government�s fiscal 2016 budget, and after assessing whether Tehran is following the nuclear agreement, the sources said.

Iran is a resource-rich country, with its oil and natural gas deposits among the world�s largest. It is therefore attracting attention from many countries ahead of the expected lifting of the sanctions.

As part of his five-day Middle East tour, Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida will visit Iran from Monday. With a bilateral investment pact likely to be reached during his stay, Kishida�s visit is apparently aimed at laying the groundwork for Abe�s visit there, the sources said.

Japan and Iran have traditionally maintained a friendly relationship. Abe will be the first Japanese prime minister to travel to Iran since Takeo Fukuda visited the country in 1978, before the Islamic revolution in 1979.

By IRNA