Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani said the West should restore its reputation in the Middle East which has been tarnished for applying double standards to terrorism.
Larijani made the statement in a meeting with the visiting Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee in Britain's House of Commons Crispin Blunt on Saturday, ICANA reported.
The speaker said terrorists in the region are being financed and supplied with weapons by the West's allies, while the US openly admits that armed forces trained and equipped by them are joining the terrorist groups.
"Staging shows and looking for temporary solutions would not be helpful. The cause of terrorism and insecurity in the region should be dealt with effectively," he said.
According to Larijani, in order to defeat terrorism, the West should ask its regional allies to stop supporting terrorists, not to provide them with weapons and money, while the global community should set out a common understanding on how to deal with the Islamic State and other terror groups.
Referring to unrests in some regional countries, the top lawmaker said people of the region are looking for democracy to be able to decide on their fate themselves.
"In Bahrain, Yemen and other countries, if the representatives of all ethnic groups form the government together, the conflicts would soon be over, just like what happened in Iraq," he said.
Stressing the need to promote democracy in the region, Larijani said, "It cannot be said that [spreading] democracy is the only way to fight terrorism, but the establishment of democracies would help reduce the power and influence of the terror groups."
Larijani said although the Iranian people are suspicious of the British government over its past behavior, Iran wants to move forward.
"Iran always looks for friendly and peaceful relations with all countries that do not seek hegemony, in line with their shared goals and mutual interests," he said.
"There are good opportunities for cooperation between the two countries in the oil and petrochemicals sectors."
Blunt said insecurity in the Middle East has resulted in global insecurity, adding that "with the help of major regional countries like Iran, we are looking to prevent the growth of malicious terror groups."
The British lawmaker said "now" is the time to bring back stability to the region, while the British government, in order to contribute to the efforts, wants to rebuild relationships with the regional states.
"In this trip, we seek to become aware of the potentials [which can be exploited] to increase cooperation," he said.
Heading a parliamentary delegation, Blunt arrived in Tehran on Friday for a three-day visit at the invitation of Alaeddin Boroujerdi, chairman of the Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission.
