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World Powers Agree to Resume Nuclear Talks with Iran
(New York Times) Nicholas Kulish and James Kanter - For the first time in more than a year the global powers dealing with Iran's disputed nuclear program said Tuesday that they would resume face-to-face negotiations. A senior French official described the Iranian letter proposing the resumption of talks as ambiguous, saying it referred to "various nuclear issues" rather than nuclear enrichment specifically. Time is of the essence for negotiators because many fear that any stalling by Iran will give the country more time to relocate enrichment centrifuges deep inside mountain bunkers that are difficult to bomb. There was little optimism in the West that talks would lead to significant breakthroughs, much less to an end to Iran's nuclear ambitions. Guido Westerwelle, Germany's foreign minister, warned Iranian officials against using talks to stall. No formal negotiations would take place until after the New Year holiday in Iran this month, a senior EU official said. Talks could formally get under way in early April.