Mr Trump stopped short of pulling out of the international accord signed with Iran in 2015 but said he would not certify the deal and asked Congress to pass new legislation to toughen sanctions against the regime.
Mr Macron said: “What I told him was not to tear up the deal.
“After that I told him, let’s have a demanding dialogue, let’s continue to conduct checks, but let’s be much more demanding with Iran on its ballistic activity.”
The international deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Action Plan (JCPOA), was designed to ensure Iran brought a halt to activities leading to the development of nuclear arms in exchange for a lifting of economic sanctions.
But the US President described the agreement as “an embarrassment” and “the worst deal ever negotiated” and used it to criticise his predecessor Barack Obama who was instrumetnal in its delivery.
Mr Trump has said: “The Iranian regime supports terrorism and exports violence, bloodshed and chaos across the Middle East. That is why we must put an end to Iran’s continued aggression and nuclear ambitions.”
But France and the European Union criticised Mr Trump’s threat to withdraw from the Iran deal, arguing the US should not act unilaterally to jeopardise a deal that was negotiated by multiple powers.
Mr Macron refused to give a direct answer when asked if he thought Mr Trump was “dangerous” or “unpredictable”.
He said: “I speak constantly to the US president because it’s my duty.
“He is the president of the world’s first power, so it’s important to anchor him in this partnership, in this multilateral approach.”
Mr Macron, who welcomed Mr Trump to Paris during Bastille Day celebrations in Paris in July, said the US President “wants to get tougher with Iran”.
He said: “I told him I thought this was the wrong approach because we have to look where we are now with Korea.”
Iran has reacted with anger to Mr Trump’s stance on the JCPOA.
The speaker for the Islamic Consultative Assembly, Ali Larijani, described the move as a direct insult to Tehran and the UN and blamed the decertification on the Republican’s distaste for his predecessor.
He said: “It seems that Mr Trump not only does not adhere to international agreements, but does not feel respect for the UN and demonstrates to all countries that the US government will not adhere to any obligations.
“Iran openly announced that the nuclear weapons have no place in our military doctrine.
“It seems that Mr Trump because of his hostility with Mr Obama would like to destroy the agreement because of internal issues in his own country.”