The US ambassador to France has been summoned following revelations by WikiLeaks that the US National Security Agency eavesdropped on the past three French presidents.

Ambassador Jane Hartley is expected to appear at the French Foreign Ministry Wednesday afternoon, according to a French diplomatic official.

The summons came after French president Francois Hollande condemned the revelations as an "unacceptable" breach of security.

The 2006-12 documents published in French newspaper Liberation and investigative website Mediapart include material that appeared to capture officials in Paris talking candidly about Greece's economy and relations with Germany.

"This involves unacceptable acts that have already given rise to discussions between the United States and France," Mr Hollande said in a statement after an emergency defence council meeting.

The statement said France has reinforced protective measures after the document release, without elaborating.

The release appeared to be timed to coincide with a vote in the French Parliament on a bill allowing broad new surveillance powers, in particular to counter terrorist threats.

The Senate approved it on Tuesday and the lower house of parliament is expected to give it final approval on Wednesday.

There was no instant confirmation of the accuracy of the documents, which covered intercepts from 2006-12 and WikiLeaks has a track record of publishing intelligence and diplomatic material.

An aide to Mr Hollande's predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy said that the former president considers these methods unacceptable. There was no immediate comment from former president Jacques Chirac, also targeted.

US National Security Council spokesman Ned Price released a statement on Tuesday evening saying the US is "not targeting and will not target the communications of President Hollande".

Mr Price did not address claims that the US had previously eavesdropped on Mr Hollande or his predecessors.

France is among several US allies that rely heavily on American spying powers when trying to prevent terrorist and other threats.