France sought to relaunch diplomatic ties with Iran in the hope of boosting business in the country, following a key nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers reached earlier this month.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius called his one-day visit to Iran "an important trip" and tried to soften tensions created by France's hard line on the nuclear issue, ABC News reported on Wednesday.

"It is true that in the past few years, for reasons everybody knows, ties have been weaker. But now, with the nuclear agreement, we hope that things are going to change," Fabius told reporters ahead of a series of meetings with Iranian top officials, including president Hassan Rouhani.