French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Tuesday he will soon travel to Iran to prepare a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron.
The visit comes as France is hoping to salvage the nuclear deal reached between Iran and world powers after US President Donald Trump refused to certify the agreement, leaving its fate to the US Congress.
Speaking to the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, Le Drian again defended the nuclear deal and said it “removes the possibility for Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon”, AFP reported.
“But that does not prevent us from being firm and demanding on the other issues” such as Iran’s missile program and it regional activities, he said.
Tehran says its nuclear work is totally peaceful and has no military aspects. It also says its conventional missiles are meant as a deterrent against the threats and hostile measures of its adversaries, such as the huge US arms sales to Saudi Arabia.
Iran has been criticized by the West for providing military backing for the Syrian government and support to resistance groups in the region.
Le Drian said he would raise those concerns during his visit, which will most probably take place in the second half of November.
Macron would be the first French president to visit Iran since 1976, but the foreign minister did not mention any date for that trip.
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