TEHRAN -- Danish Foreign Ministry Director General Peter Hanson Wednesday in Teheran promised closer Iran-European Union ties during Denmark's EU presidency.

Iran's reform trend has created a positive ground for expansion of relations between Iran and the European Union, and Denmark will take effective steps toward forging closer ties during its six-month EU presidency starting in July, Hanson was quoted by IRNA as saying.

Hanson is in Tehran to study Iran's political scene before Denmark takes the helm of the EU next month. He met with several Iranian officials, including members of Parliament, and assured Tehran that EU's policies for trade and diplomatic ties with Iran are independent of the United States.

The U.S. has accused Iran of seeking weapons of mass destruction and sponsoring terrorism and also labeled Iran as part of the world's "axis of evil" with Iraq and North Korea.