A breakthrough proved predictably elusive in the two days of nuclear negotiations between Iran and world powers that ended late Thursday in Baghdad, but it took strenuous diplomacy — and an unscheduled second day of talks — to …
nuclear
Must-Reads from Around the World, May 23, 2012
Long-Term Uncertainty Remains in Nuclear Talks with Iran
Must-Reads from Around the World, May 17, 2012
Suspicious Minds – Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reveals that elderly Communist Party members in the Chinese province of Yunnan have been questioned after they penned a letter calling for the sacking of Zhou Yongkang, the country’s top security official, amid rumors of continued infighting following the downfall of Bo Xilai. …
Political Pressure Mounts Ahead of Iran Nuclear Talks
Iranian diplomat Ali Bagheri is reportedly now huddled with his EU counterpart Helga Schmid at an undisclosed location, shaping the agenda for the next round nuclear negotiations that are now barely a week away. Sequestering the …
Israel Sets Tough Demands for Next Round of Iran Talks
During a visit to Israel on Wednesday, Catherine Ashton, the European diplomat leading nuclear negotiations with Iran, got a reminder of the enormity of the challenge she faces. Ashton met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu …
Why Israeli Challenges to Netanyahu on Iran May Help Obama’s Nuclear Diplomacy
The steady torrent of criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu’s Iran rhetoric by some of the most senior figures in Israel’s security establishment may be causing consternation within the Prime Minister’s office, but it’s not necessarily …
How France’s Presidential Runoff Could Shape Iran Diplomacy
French President Nicolas Sarkozy may have once been caught in an unguarded moment telling President Barack Obama he couldn’t stand Benjamin Netanyahu and branding the Israeli leader “a liar,” but Netanyahu would nonetheless lose …
For Israel, the Problem with Iran Diplomacy Is the Prospect of Nuclear Compromise
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu amplified his skepticism of President Obama’s Iran strategy on Wednesday, when he used a Holocaust remembrance speech to warn that Iran was building nuclear weapons in order to destroy …
Must-Reads from Around the World: April 18, 2012
Clutching at Straw – With former British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw now being accused of complicity in the rendition and alleged torture of Libyan dissident Abdel Hakim Belhadj, The Week investigates why MI6 agents have let …
Iran Nuclear Talks: Hitting the ‘Snooze’ Button on the Alarm Clock of Confrontation
Staying within the “clock is ticking” metaphor favored by the Obama Administration when discussing diplomacy with Iran, Saturday’s talks in Istanbul could be said to have hit the snooze button. The doomsday alarm could yet sound, …
Must-Reads From Around the World: April 12, 2012
Pyongyang’s Plan – Despite mounting international pressure, a defiant North Korea appears poised to launch its Unha-3 rocket, viewed by the U.S. and others as a ballistic missile test that violates U.N. resolutions aimed at …
Iran Talks: Amid Ticking Clocks and Closing Windows, What Would Success Look Like?
The clock is ticking and the window is closing for a diplomatic solution to the Iran nuclear standoff, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned Saturday, ahead of talks scheduled for April 13 in Istanbul. “We are determined to …