Macron calls for wider Iran deal

French President Emmanuel Macron has stepped up calls for the renegotiation of the Iran nuclear agreement as tensions mount over the country's weapons capabilities.

With a May 12 deadline looming for President Donald Trump to decide whether or not to pull out of the deal and re-impose sanctions against Iran, Macron says regardless of that decision a new agreement should be negotiated with Teheran.

Macron says Trump responded "positively" to his recent suggestion for a new agreement, while he had also "exchanged about that" in the past few days with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Macron says whatever Trump's coming decision, a broader deal is needed because "nobody wants a war in the region and nobody wants an escalation in terms of tension in the region."