Tokyo is in discussions with Tehran on a visit to Japan by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani later this month, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe confirmed on Monday. 

The visit, seen as an attempt to resolve Iran's nuclear impasse with the United States, will be the first trip to Japan by an Iranian president since 2000. 

He also said Japan wants to make every possible effort to promote Middle East peace. 

In May 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of an international agreement that aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear program and re-imposed sanctions on it.  

Japan maintains friendly ties with both the U.S. and Iran, and has tried to ease tension between the countries, which broke off diplomatic relations after Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. 

Citing a senior diplomatic source, Kyodo news agency reported last week that Iran had proposed the visit and that the proposal was relayed during a two-day visit to Japan by Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Abbas Araqchi. 

For Middle East peacemaking plan, Abe did not specify when there might be a decision on sending Japanese seamen to the region to guard ships supplying Japan. 

"As one of those efforts, we are currently in talks about a visit by President Rouhani to Japan," he added. 

Abe did not give details, but local media reported the visit could take place on December 20 or 21. 

The Nikkei business daily said last week the government would propose deploying one escort ship and a patrol aircraft from the Maritime Self-Defense Force on a one-year mission that could be renewed annually. It plans to finalize the plan by year-end, the Nikkei said. 

Abe had a two-day visit to Iran in June and met with Rouhani and Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, during which Khamenei reiterated Iran's stance that it has no intention of making or using nuclear weapons. 

Abe's high-stakes, yet symbolic visit to Iran, marked the first visit to be made by a Japanese prime minister to Iran since Takeo Fukuda in 1978, and also the first time a Japanese prime minister has ever met with the Iranian supreme leader.  

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif paid a visit to Japan in August to meet with Abe to express that Iran is not seeking any tensions with the U.S. under the premise of every individual country's rights being guaranteed by international law.       

Zarif told Abe that Iran welcomes the Japanese government's role in trying to ease tensions in the Middle East, reported Kyodo news agency.

(With input from Reuters)