Enriching relations

by Gareth Smith November 12, 2013

written by Gareth Smith November 12, 2013

Earlier this year, I had long discussions with two former European ambassadors to Iran recalling the 2003-05 negotiations between the European Union and Iran over its nuclear program, the last substantive engagement between the West and the Islamic Republic before a decade-long standoff. Both Paul von Maltzahn, German ambassador from 2003 to 2006, and Sir Richard Dalton, Britain’s ambassador from 2002 to 2006, called the talks a missed opportunity. “We underrated the tactical capacities of the Iranians and overstated the importance of a zero tolerance [of uranium enrichment],” said von Maltzahn. “With hindsight the inducements [put forward by the Europeans] were too small for the concession of a prolonged period of no enrichment,” said Dalton. Last month’s talks in Geneva between Iran and the world powers have raised hopes that negotiations can now make the breakthrough that failed to materialize in 2003-05. This is partly because United States policy has

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.

Enriching relations

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