Hope of compromise in Iran

by Gareth Smith May 3, 2012

written by Gareth Smith May 3, 2012

Talks between Iran and the leading world powers, including the United States, in mid-April have revived hopes of compromise on Tehran’s nuclear program. Essentially the two sides agreed that the basis for agreement would be the Nuclear Non-Proliferation treaty (NPT) and so respect Iran’s right to peaceful use of nuclear energy, with specialists preparing in advance for a second round of talks in Baghdad on May 23. As I have written here before, the outlines of a potential agreement with Iran have knocked around for some years. But an article by Dennis Ross, the pro-Israeli former Obama adviser, in the New York Times in February was telling in suggesting Washington would accept Iran enriching uranium, a “concession” that could enable Iran to claim victory with its “rights” acknowledged. In a second article, Hossein Mousavian, the former Iranian security official at Princeton University, argued Tehran’s bottom line was “the ability to produce reliable civilian

Gareth Smith

Gareth Smith was a distinguished journalist who reported from the Middle East for over two decades. He served as the Financial Times correspondent in Tehran, where he was the chief Iran correspondent from 2003, following his earlier role as Lebanon correspondent. Throughout his career, Smith covered Middle Eastern affairs for leading media outlets, including The Financial Times, The Guardian, and the BBC. He also contributed as an editor to Executive magazine. His work as a freelance journalist in the 1990s, focusing on the politics of Iran and Iraq, paved the way for his appointment at the FT. In 2009, he relocated to the west coast of Ireland, where he balanced freelance journalism with his passion for nature and the land.

Hope of compromise in Iran

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