France would like to de-escalate tensions between regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran, France's Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Monday, Jan 18, ahead of a visit to Riyadh to meet with King Salman and other officials, Reuters reports.

"Our view as France is to try to de-escalate pressure," Fabius said, adding that France would also discuss different issues with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani who is due to visit Paris next week.