Talking to Iraq is fine, but you still have to know what it is you want from the Iranians, what you can and cannot offer them, who should be running the negotiations from the American side, how long you keep talks going if they aren't leading anywhere, and how you coordinate your talks with the Iranians with the Europeans'.

The Bush administration doesn't seem to have decided any of this. As far as I can tell its internal stalemate on this subject persists. Easy enough to say that it shouldn't, of course. As long as it does, though, negotiations with Iraq are bound to be an invitation to disppointment and misunderstanding.

"U.S.-Iranian negotiations are futile, we shoud bomb 'em!"

No one will accuse Ahmedinejad of having illusions about his goal of Israel's elimination.

Can we accuse Packer of having illusions about talk?