Bernard Kouchner, the French Foreign Minister, heard appeals from Iraqi leaders for French help as he paid a visit to Baghdad that underlines the thaw in Franco-American relations since Nicolas Sarkozy succeeded President Chirac.

Dr Kouchner, who made his name as a leftist human rights campaigner, arrived unannounced in Baghdad last night on the first trip by a French Minister since Mr Chirac mounted a global front against the 2003 invasion.

He said that he is there to listen to all of Iraq's divided communities and came with no new proposals. France remains convinced that the Iraqis must restore their nation themselves, he said.

But Dr Kouchner's presence underlines France's new openness towards the Iraq conflict since Mr Sarkozy's election in May. In 2003, Dr Kouchner was one of the few French public figures who refused to condemn the US-led invasion, though he did not condone it.

The White House welcomed Dr Kouchner's visit, calling it "one more example...of a growing international desire to help Iraq become a stable and secure country".

Under Mr Chirac, Paris refused Iraqi requests to train the security forces and invest in reconstruction and it sought a firm timetable for the US retreat.

France, which once had close ties to the Saddam Hussein regime, has been criticised by the Iraqi Government for giving priority to its relations with Sunni leaders. Paris now wants to balance this with closer links with the Shia Muslim and Kurdish leaders who control the government, according to Dr Kouchner's aides.

Dr Kouchner has long had a friendship with President Jalal Talabani, the Kurdish President of Iraq and has also established a relationship with Adel Abdel Mahdi, the Shia Vice-President.

France is also keen to restore its influence in a region in which it has long been one of the main diplomatic powers. The opening to Iraq is matched by a new dialogue with the Hezbollah opposition in Lebanon.

Meeting Dr Kouchner last night, Nuri al-Maliki, the Prime Minister, urged Paris to support his embattled government. Today, the French Minister is seeing Mr Talabani, who invited him on the visit.

The rest of his schedule has not been disclosed but he was thought likely to visit the Kurdish region. He is expected to reassure the Kurds that Paris aims to open a section of its Baghdad embassy at Erbil, the "capital" of Kurdistan.

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