The call came during talks here with one of Iran's most senior leaders Hasan Rohani which lasted just over an hour.

Chirac said that "France noted with satisfaction decisions taken by Iran on the nuclear issue," the president's spokeswoman Catherine Colonna said.

"He underlined that it was now necessary to continue on this track and implement fully the commitments taken," she added.

"We would like a new future for relations between France and Iran and to reinforce political, economic and cultural relations," she quoted Chirac as saying.

Rohani, who heads Iran's national security council, made no statement after the meeting. The Iranian official who arrived in Paris late Tuesday is due to meet France's Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin on Friday.

He led negotiations between Iran, the European Union and the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, at the end of last year which led to Tehran signing the additional protocol to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty last month.

The United States accused Iran of secretly working to manufacture highly enriched uranium, which can be used to make atomic bombs. Tehran has categorically denied the claims.

WAR.WIRE