Obama administration sources told the Wall Street Journal that they are planning to “open direct talks” with the government of Iran to discuss possible responses to the crisis in Iraq:
The U.S. and Iran have publicly committed in recent days to provide military support if requested to Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and help his government repel an offensive the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, or ISIS, has launched against Baghdad and other major Iraqi cities over the past week.
The Journal notes that Iran’s current foreign minister, Mohammad Zarif, worked with the second Bush administration; Iran helped contribute to the overthrow of the Taliban, though it has since become more friendly with that anti-American group. Iran and the U.S. also support opposing forces in Syria.
The U.S. and Iran do not have embassies in each others’ countries, but they have occasionally held direct talks to discuss Iran’s nuclear program.
