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US, Iran Need to Address Nuclear Question Directly

Regional security issues in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan can only serve as catalysts for a broader US-Iran nuclear dialogue, Kayhan Barzegar writes.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (C) attends the Army Day parade in Tehran April 18, 2013. REUTERS/Hamid Forootan/ISNA/Handout (IRAN - Tags: MILITARY ANNIVERSARY)  
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In the course of Iran-US talks, regional issues have acted as a double-edged sword. On the one hand, they provided the grounds for engaging in the talks. On the other, they have increased the existing sense of mutual distrust. The fact is that concerned regional issues can only act as triggers for initiating strategic talks between Iran and the US.

Some prevailing views in the West tend to believe that focusing on regional issues in the course of negotiations — given the common geopolitical interests in the region between Tehran and Washington — would help negotiations proceed. Contrary to these views, one should argue that Iran-US relations in the region, during the last 34 years, have actually been the cause of division.

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