Iranian President Hassan Rouhani emerged from meetings Thursday with French political and business leaders with a number of multi-billion Euro deals and declaring the start of a “new relationship” between Paris and the clerical regime in Teheran. French Prime Minister Manuel Valls responded that “Iran can count on France. France is ready to use its companies, its engineers, its technicians and its many resources to help to modernize your country.” French corporations including Airbus and Peugot were the big winners of Rouhani’s visit, chalking up deals to sell 114 passenger aircraft and 200,000 automobiles a year, respectively, to Iran. French oil giant Total is also reported to be in negotiations with Iran for a mega-deal worth billions of Euros. However, there were also protests against Rouhani’s visit to Paris and serious concerns were voiced by political leaders over Iran’s role in the Syrian conflict. Read More >>
