Iran’s new FM says Macron invited him to Paris

TEHRAN, Iran — New Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian has said that French President Emmanuel Macron has invited him to Paris, state TV reports.

There is no immediate comment from the Elysee Palace.

Amirabdollahian attended a summit in Baghdad on Saturday alongside regional leaders and Macron, the only leader from outside the region.

“The French were very interested to use the opportunity [of the Iraq summit] to get close to Iran,” the minister is quoted as saying by state TV’s website in a late night report.

“Mr Macron… came to me twice and stressed that ‘we are very interested for you to travel to Paris’,” he said.

“He called his foreign minister over and said: ‘I have invited [Amirabdollahian] … and we should review bilateral ties and find solutions to maintain talks.'”

Iran and France, alongside Britain, China and Germany, are the remaining parties to the troubled 2015 Iranian nuclear deal.

The accord promised Tehran international sanctions relief in exchange for limits on its nuclear program, but it was torpedoed in 2018 when former US president Donald Trump withdrew and reimposed sanctions on Iran.

Six rounds of nuclear talks between Iran and the major powers — with the US indirectly taking part — were held in Vienna between April and June in an attempt to revive the accord.

The last round concluded on June 20, with no date set for another.