Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. Photograph: Raheb Homavandi/Reuters
Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the favourite to win Iran's presidential election next month, today said he wanted to see an improvement in the country's relations with the US.
Mr Rafsanjani, who served two terms as president from 1989 to 1997, is viewed by the west as a pragmatist and he is selling himself to voters as the man ideally suited to rebuild bridges.
He would succeed the discredited Mohammad Khatami, whose attempts at reform were stymied by Iran's forces of conservatism.
In an interview with the Reuters news agency, Mr Rafsanjani said: "I think that Americans should gradually begin to adopt positive behaviour rather than doing evil. They should not expect an immediate reaction in return for their positive measures. It will take time. Over time, when Iranians witness America's positive measures, then they will feel that America has given up its hostile policies."
"Evil" is an interesting choice of word. As far as George Bush is concerned, Iran is part of an "axis of evil", along with North Korea and Iraq when it was under the thumb of Saddam Hussein.
But as long as deadlock remains over Iran's nuclear programme, it is difficult to see the US offering an olive branch to Mr Rafsanjani, should he win the presidential vote.
Iran is under pressure from the US and Europe to abandon its plans to enrich uranium or face possible UN sanctions. Unsurprisingly though, Mr Rafsanjani told Reuters he would never abandon the country's nuclear programme, comparing such a step to ceding Iranian land.
"It is like giving away part of our territory," Mr Rafsanjani said. "This is our nation's legitimate right ... especially when it is in accordance with international laws and regulations."
Tehran argues that the process of converting raw uranium yellowcake into UF4 gas, a precursor to manufacturing enriched uranium fuel, is in accord with the terms of the November pact; the US and the EU nations say it breaches the agreement.
Next week, the EU and Iran are to hold yet more talks to try to come to an accommodation, but there seems little point until the results from the elections are in.
If he wins, Mr Rafsanjani's previous experience with hawkish Republicans should come in useful. He did, after all, play a part in hatching a secret deal - the Iran-contra affair - with the Reagan administration in 1985 to obtain US arms. In return he helped win the release of Americans held hostage by Iranian-backed militants in Lebanon.
"I believe the main solution is to gain the trust of Europe and America and to remove their concerns over the peaceful nature of our nuclear industry and to assure them that there will never be a diversion to military use," he said.
Trying to win the trust of the White House while keeping his own hardliners in check will take some doing. On top of that, he has to improve Iran's economy to win over young Iranians thoroughly disillusioned with the mullahs.
