Epstein Secrets

t Matter Reuel Marc Gerecht April 30, 2012 -- Since we don't know what Saeed Jalili, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, said at the recent confab in Istanbul, we can't be sure that Israeli prime minister Bibi Netanyahu was right to dismiss the powwow as a "freebie" for Tehran. Also, the Islamic Republic

powwow as a "freebie" for Tehran. Also, the Islamic Republic is a theocracy: The most senior officials need to report face-to-face to their master. Jalili, an ill-tempered, narrow-minded, one-legged veteran of the EFTA00660164 Iran-Iraq war, lost face after a disastrous meeting in Geneva in October

he edge of the cliff, but they don't seem eager to jump. The mechanics of an eventual settlement are clear enough after Saturday's first session in Istanbul: Iran would agree to stop enriching uranium to the 20 percent level and to halt work at an underground facility near Qom built for higher enrichmen

o peaceful nuclear energy, "our talks for cooperation based on step-by-step principles and reciprocity on Iran's nuclear issue could be commenced." Jalili's status as personal representative of the supreme leader was important, too. "Step-by-step" and "reciprocity" are the two guideposts for this exer

ks have been a roller coaster of speculation, with hopes rising and falling as each side plays out the game of expectations. The opening meeting in Istanbul, in April, produced a surge of optimism, which plunged to foreboding after the meeting in Baghdad last month. Some have predicted that the talks m

t with Catherine Ashton, the chief European Union diplomat who EFTA_R1_02203681 EFTA02720369 heads the "P5+1" negotiating group of major powers. Jalili also dropped Iran's call for another preliminary meeting to prepare for the Moscow session, which is set for next Monday and Tuesday. "They backe