The former French prime minister says Iran's potential should be used to help contain regional crises.
Dominique de Villepin made the remarks in a meeting with the head of the Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, in Tehran on Tuesday.
"Iran's potential should be used to help curb regional crises, from Palestine and Lebanon to Iraq and Afghanistan," the Mehr news agency quoted him as saying.
The former French official voiced concern over the Islamic State (IS) terrorist actions in the region and highlighted the key role Iran can play to help secure peace and stability in the Middle East region.
He added, "Addressing regional crises would be fruitless in case the regional role of Iran is overlooked."
He also touched on the negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 (the five permanent UN Security Council members and Germany) over Tehran's nuclear program and said, "I hope the negotiations will bear fruitful results soon and the achievements of the initial agreement lead to a comprehensive deal through efforts of the two sides."
Boroujerdi, for his part, referred to the latest incidents in the region, particularly the IS terrorist group's movements in northern Syria and Iraq and said, "The United States and its regional allies have been supporting terrorist actions in Syria over the past four years which have developed into the current situation."
The lawmaker described the air strikes against IS fighters by the US-led coalition as a "show" and said, "The United States and its allies in the region are not serious and sincere enough to fight IS terrorists."
Elsewhere, Boroujerdi referred to the nuclear talks with the major powers and said, "Iran has implemented all the necessary measures to build confidence within the framework of the interim agreement (which was signed last November) in Geneva, but the other side has failed to fulfill a large part of its obligations up to now."
"In this way, reaching a (final) agreement sounds far-fetched," he added.
De Villepin arrived in Tehran on Monday to discuss issues of mutual interest with Iranian officials. He held separate meetings with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, the head of the Expediency Council's Center for Strategic Studies, Ali Akbar Velayati, and Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani.
