Reporting "Asre Khodro", French President Francois Hollande (left) greets Iranian President Hassan Rouhani before a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Thursday.

While Hollande urged French firms to return to Iran and called for a new era in their relationship, he said it did not mean the countries did not have differences which he said was their joint responsibility to help resolve. He said he reminded the Iranian leader that France was "committed to human rights". "That was when we started to hear the sound of the revolution which started in France and spread around the world", Rouhani said. Speaking through a translator, he said "that allowed us to reach accords" on curbing Iran's nuclear program and lifting sanctions.

President Hassan Rouhani and his delegation signed a score of trade agreements worth around €40bn including the purchase of 118 Airbuses which are partly built in Britain. Much of Iran's civilian hardware - from planes to cars to railways - is old or out of action. British Airways officials visited Tehran earlier this week to discuss the resumption of flights, AP reported, citing Mohammad Khodakarami, the deputy head of Iran's civil aviation authority. He did not elaborate. British Airlines and KLM officials have said there are not yet concrete plans for resuming flights. Iran bought its aircraft from Boeing when the USA and Iran had close ties before the 1979 Islamic revolution. The venture will produce 100,000 vehicles a year starting in late 2017, with output eventually doubling. Peugeot was a major player in Iran's auto market before the sanctions were imposed.

Cabinet members and business leaders from both countries signed bilateral agreements in several sectors, including banking, exports, health and the environment. In another potential bonanza, French oil giant Total is said to be interested in buying Iranian crude. Maryam Rajavi, president elect of the Iran resistance said: "Rolling out the red carpet for Rouhani by European governments is to welcome the godfather of terrorism and fundamentalism, to legitimise the regime and its most repressive factions". France's biggest lender BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA) was fined $8.9 billion in the United States previous year for past sanctions-busting against countries including Iran. While nothing has been signed yet, Total's previous strong presence in Iran puts it in pole position to acquire a significant share of the country's oil and gas fields.

Source: cinemablaze.com