BICOM

United States officials gave the first indication that informal discussions with Iran are taking place over the huge military gains being made in Iraq by the Sunni Jihadist ISIS group.

The success of ISIS has raised concerns in both Washington, which is keen to see democracy thrive in Iraq, and Tehran, which views the government of Nouri al-Maliki in Baghdad as a fellow Shi’ite ally. In an interview with Yahoo News, US Secretary of State John Kerry said, “We’re open to discussions if there is something constructive that can be contributed by Iran” and even indicated that he wouldn’t rule out US-Iran military coordination.

However, Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said that, “there is absolutely no intention” to cooperate militarily with Iran. But, he also told Reuters, “It’s possible that on the sidelines of those [nuclear] discussions there could be discussions surrounding the situation in Iraq,” in reference to the nuclear negotiations which will resume formally today in Vienna between Iran and the P5+1 powers (US, UK, France, Russia, China and Germany). The two sides are aiming to agree a long-term deal regarding Iran’s nuclear programme, although talks last month made little headway. Yesterday, US Deputy Secretary of State William Burns met with Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammed Zarif and P5+1 delegation head Catherine Ashton in Vienna prior to today’s formal talks.

Speaking to Reuters, Israel’s Minister for Strategic Affairs, Yuval Steinitz expressed concern over the prospect of US-Iran discussions over Iraq. He said, “We would especially not want for a situation to be created where, because both the United States and Iran support the government of [Iraqi Prime Minister] al-Maliki, it softens the American positions on the issue which is most critical for the peace of the world, which is the Iranian nuclear issue.”

Meanwhile, several media outlets including the Telegraph and Guardian both speculate that Foreign Secretary William Hague could today announce the re-opening of the UK Embassy in Tehran, closed after it was ransacked in 2011.