US envoy William Burns to meet with Iran in Geneva

After listening William Burns of the State Department respond to questions from Senators last Wednesday, I blogged that the meeting left me "hopeful." Today, a historic breakthrough. The NY Times reports:

President Bush has authorized the most significant American diplomatic contact with Iran since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, sending the State Department’s third-ranking official [William Burns] to Geneva for a meeting this weekend on Iran’s nuclear program, administration officials said Tuesday.

There remains the possibility that this is a "we tried and failed" ploy, last ditch diplomatic showmanship before Bush orders US bombers to attack Iran. As Iran may fear what the Bush administration (or Israel) will do next, it may want talks in Geneva to succeed. Let's hope the Bush administration has accorded William Burns sufficient authority to cut a deal.

Photo: By Jotman. Shows William Burns at the Committee on Foreign Relations meeting last Wednesday (here and here).