On the very same day that the Bush administration pointed to Iran as the single country that may come to pose the greatest security challenge to the US, the two nations began moving toward direct, though limited, diplomatic talks. That has to be encouraging.

Tehran took the biggest step, because Iran’s ban on negotiating with the “Great Satan” dates to a decree by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Washington has been open to at least limited contact on specific issues. But apart from pragmatic discussions about how to avoid accidental frictions in Afghanistan, the two countries have not directly talked about the major issues between them in more than 25 years. Mistrust between the two has grown only deeper. Unwise American policy choices like the invasion of Iraq and the failure to adopt serious energy conservation measures have dangerously increased Iran’s leverage without giving it any incentive to moderate its most troubling policies.

Iran needs to demonstrate some good faith. Months of bad-faith diplomacy with Europe have sent the issue of Iran’s nuclear adventurism to the UN Security Council, where heightened forms of international pressure are now being discussed. If Iran is ready to seek a diplomatic resolution, it needs to show its seriousness by suspending all uranium enrichment activities. — The New York Times