European diplomats say that after a year of dilly-dallying and shilly-shallying, the Iranians have agreed to spend two days in Geneva discussing their nuclear programme. The Iranian government has a different idea.
European diplomats say that after a year of dilly-dallying and shilly-shallying, the Iranians have agreed to spend two days in Geneva discussing their nuclear programme. The idea is that sanctions, if not biting, are at least nipping.
The Iranian government has a different idea.
“Tehran says the talks will be held on one day only and will not include the nuclear issue, as the case has been resolved,” reports Press TV, airily.
Seasoned western negotiators find the most difficult thing about such negotiations is the ability of Iranian diplomats to talk endlessly about everything apart from the matter at hand. Peace and love in the world, the evils of colonialism, the international economic crisis – they have an opinion on it all. But they have nothing to say about enriching uranium, secret nuclear sites buried in mountainsides or spinning centrifuges.
According to the official Iranian news agency, Saeed Jalili, the chief Iranian nuclear negotiator this morning “blasted the West’s silence about the recent terrorist moves against the Iranian elites, and said, “Resorting to terrorist moves to prevent Iran from acquiring science is a combination of fascist and medieval spirits.”
He was referring to the assassination last week of an Iranian nuclear scientist, and the attempted killing of another.
Both men were targeted by “sticky bombs”, planted on the sides of their cars by speeding motorcyclists. Such bombs are thought to be favoured by the Mossad – a recent WikiLeaks cable talks of how a similar device was used in the infamous gangland killing of underworld boss Yaajov Alperon in Tel Aviv a few years back.
The talks are being held under the aegis of Catherine Ashton, EU foreign policy chief – or, as the Iranian news agency delightfully calls her, “EU foreign police chief”. Her predecessor, Javier Solana, got very excited last October as the Iranians had convinced him they might be moving towards doing a deal. Then a new clandestine nuclear site was uncovered, and Iran decided it didn’t want to do any deal at all.
Hence the pessimism this time. One official stressed that the best outcome would be an agreement to talk again.
“All I can tell you is that it’s going to be very, very boring,” said a senior EU diplomat who has clearly been round this circle a few times before.