Iran, the US, and China

President Ahmadinejad of Iran has written a letter directly to President Bush, presumably over the issue of nuclear weapons. Although the White House played it down, oil traders saw it as a possible easing of tensions, and the price of a barrel of crude dropped below $70. The foreign ministers of the UN Security Council countries are meeting in New York to talk about what to do about Iran, and I would like to propose an idea for them: why not set up direct talks between the US and Iran here in Shanghai? This city is a great place for talks not only because China is the best possible broker between Iran and the US, but also because it showcases what might be the closest point of diplomatic contact between those two countries since they severed relations in 1979: the Iranian and American consulates are across the street from one another on Huai Hai Road.