Iranian foreign minister calls off Paris trip

The Iranian foreign ministry summoned the French ambassador to Tehran this week to protest remarks President Nicolas Sarkozy made about Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

A French Foreign Ministry official says Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki had been due to meet his French counterpart, Bernard Kouchner, Saturday and to attend a foreign minister's conference on Afghanistan Sunday.

The official, who asked not to be named, citing department policy, said it was unclear who would represent Iran at the conference. Officials at the Iranian embassy in Paris were not available for comment.