Journalism of Courage
Iran’s new president Friday said President Barack Obama struck a new tone in his UN speech this week that left him optimistic about easing tensions between the two countries.
Hassan Rouhani also said the recent elections that propelled him to the Iranian presidency created a new environment which could pave the way for better relations with the West.
In speaking with senior European officials and also hearing Obama… it seemed that they sounded different compared to the past,and I view that as a positive step to the resettlement of the differences between the Islamic Republic between the Republic of Iran and the West, Rouhani said.
He said he did not meet with Obama on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly this week because both sides were convinced that the timetable was too short to plan a meeting of two presidents and at the same time ensure that its conclusion would be solid.
Iran watchers say Rouhani may have limited time possibly a year or less to reach a settlement on the nuclear issue before Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei decides negotiations are fruitless.
In an apparent reference to resistance among hardliners back home,Rouhani noted that after 35 years of great tensions between Iran and the United States and a very number of issues that persist … a meeting of the presidents for the first time will naturally come with complications of its own.
But he said Iran emerged hopeful from a lower-level meeting with the US and its international partners aimed at restarting talks to settle their nuclear standoff.
We hope that these talks will yield in a short period of time tangible results, Rouhani said.
The upbeat,if guarded,tone by both sides after Thursdays meeting of Iran,the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany was seen as a significant step forward after months of stalled talks.
It was capped by an unexpected one-on-one meeting between US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
It was the highest-level direct contact between the United States and Iran in six years.
