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Macron, Rohani hold phone call ahead of Le Drian visit to Tehran

(With FRANCE-IRAN-FM-VISIT) PARIS, March 4 (KUNA)-- French President Emmanuel Macron held a phone conversation Sunday with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rohani one day ahead of the March 5 visit to Tehran by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, the Elysee Palace said in a statement Sunday.
The call between the two leaders addressed a number of key issues, foremost among them the ongoing Syrian conflict and Macron's urging that Iran pressure the Syrian regime to implement the latest UN Security Council resolution, voted ten days ago, to get a 30-day cease-fire across all of Syria.
Resolution 2401 was voted unanimously under Kuwaiti UNSC Presidency and it was tabled and sponsored by Kuwait and Sweden.
Despite the unanimity in the Security Council, the UN text has not been respected and violations continue today.
Macron told Rohani that Iran had "particular responsability", due to its links with Damascus, to "put necessary pressure" on the Syrian regime to stop indiscriminate attacks on civilian populations in the Eastern Ghouta area, near the Syrian capital.
Both Macron and Rohani agreed to work over the coming days and in "an operational manner" to get results on the ground so that humanitarian aid can be delievered and an effective cease-fire can be put in place, Macron's office said.
The two leaders agreed to speak again within a week to discuss progress on the above issues.
The French President also indicated to Rohani "the attachment of France to the nuclear agreement (signed in ) Vienna on July 14, 2015 and on its strict implementation." Macron also raised the issue of Iran's ballistic missile programme and France's demands concerning this "problem" and also with regard to regional security issues, in particular in Lebanon.
President Macron "stressed the expectation of a constructive contribution by Iran to a regional de-escalation and resolution of the crises in the Middle East," the Elysee affirmed.
All these questions will be addressed during the French Foreign Minister's visit to Iran on Monday, it was added. (end) jk.ibi