"France wants to be able to allow a larger number of Iranians wishing to travel to France to ask for a visa in improved conditions," the French minister said at the start of a visit to the Islamic republic.

"This project, which aims to double the number of visas currently issued for Iran, should take effect in the summer of 2017," he said at the French ambassador's residence in Tehran.

Iran's foreign ministry said on Saturday it will ban Americans from entering the country in response to President Donald Trump's "insulting" order restricting arrivals from Iran and six other mostly Muslim countries.