Diplomacy 101

Today, Barack Obama gave his first address as president to the United Nations general assembly. However, there were more important developments happening concurrently within the international community. Of course, much has been said, both in the United States and abroad, about Obama's decision to cancel the missile defense shield planned in Poland and the Czech Republic. Russia has certainly spoken approvingly about the decision, and it may have played into their decision to change their stance on Iran.
Iran has said that they expect the nuclear issue to be raised at the upcoming summit of the Security Council and Iran. According to the BBC, the Iranian Foreign Minister, Manouchehr Mottaki, has told his Japanese counterpart that Iran is committed to a world with no nuclear weapons, but Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said that although he is open to discussions over his country's nuclear program, he will accept no restraints. Russia, which has been supportive of Iran, including selling them uranium, has said that they will not allow the creation of nuclear weapons in Iran, and that the Iranians must be encouraged to make the right decision. President Medvedev has said, however, that sanctions may be inevitable.
After the summit between the United States and Russia a few months ago, it was clear that there was still progress to be made on the issue of nuclear disarmament. By deciding to forgo the useless missile defense shield, Obama has wisely lowered tensions between the two nations. This has allowed Medvedev to make the sensible decision to increase pressure on Iran. This is how diplomacy works. Now the real work begins. Negotiations with Iran will be more difficult. Ahmadinejad has said that Iran will "shake all hands that are honestly extended," but if both countries come to the table with mistrust, it will take an act of god to settle this dispute in the near term.