The Iranians' distrustful attitude toward the United States could change if Washington turns to a more "realistic" approach to Iran, the Majlis speaker said in an interview with CNN on Tuesday.
Asked whether last month's nuclear deal with major powers might improve the prospect of Tehran-Washington ties, Ali Larijani said, "It was the US, I mean the former president of the US, who started several wars in my region, which resulted in huge damage."
"I just want to remind you that it is because of such actions that people in Iran are using the term [the Great Satan to refer to the US] and they are pessimistic about the relationship between Iran and the United States."
"If the US chooses to adopt a more realistic approach and attitude toward Iran, then those habits and those terms will naturally change," Larijani noted.
Iran and major powers, including the US, reached a historic deal on July 14 in Vienna to settle a dispute of over 12 years on Tehran's nuclear program.
The senior lawmaker described the accord as "good", despite its "shortcomings".
"In general, I think this is an acceptable agreement. There might be some shortcomings in it, but overall it's a good deal."
The pact is to be reviewed by Parliament and the Supreme National Security Council before going into force.
He reserved judgment on the possible outcome of the review by the two bodies and whether Iran would finally accept the deal, saying it is yet to be thoroughly examined.
"I cannot tell you for sure now. We'll have to look into the positives and negatives of the deal. But I can tell you that Parliament will pass its judgment in a month."
Pointing to about 22 months of talks leading to the deal, he said, "I should tell you that the Americans continued to bully us even during the negotiations, but ultimately and thank God the Islamic Republic of Iran managed to fulfill some of its demands and to put several things in the deal which are in our favor."
"The Vienna agreement has set the stage for the development of a better understanding about other issues, whether regional or international."
