OPTIMISM, in the intricate and frustrating world of international wrangling about Iran’s nuclear programme, is a relative concept. But the White House did call the opening of talks between Iran and the “5+1 group” (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany) in Istanbul four weeks ago a “positive first step”. After several months in which a pre-emptive military strike by Israel on Iran’s nuclear facilities seemed to be becoming more likely, hopes of a diplomatic solution have now risen. Attention is switching to Baghdad where, on May 23rd, the work on a deal will begin in earnest.Iran’s return to the table in an apparently more constructive mood marks a sharp change. The latest round of talks failed in January 2011, after Iran’s chief negotiator, Saeed Jalili, set preconditions that other countries found unacceptable. But since the end of 2011 pressure on the regime in Tehran has increased. The UN’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), published a damning report detailing its concerns over the “possible military dimensions” of Iran’s nuclear programme....

AYATOLLAH ALI KHAMENEI does not like atom bombs. He has said so not once but many times, including in a fatwa issued in his authority as Rahbar, or supreme leader and chief theologian, of the Islamic Republic of Iran. As recently as February he reiterated the opinion. “Nuclear weapons are not at all beneficial to us,” Mr Khamenei told an audience of his country’s nuclear scientists. “From an ideological and juridical perspective, we consider developing nuclear weapons unlawful. We consider using such weapons as a big sin. We also believe that keeping such weapons is futile and dangerous, and we will never go after them.”Only a few weeks earlier, Barack Obama, the American president, had called on Iran to state clearly that its wish was to pursue peaceful nuclear power, not a nuclear weapon. Optimists interpreted Mr Khamenei’s statement as a positive response, and see the encouraging resumption of nuclear talks as the practical result of a renewed spirit of common interest.But many people neither like nor trust Mr Khamenei. In disavowing nuclear weapons, perhaps the Iranian leader is practising the Shia doctrine of taqiyya, a form of permitted dissimulation—ie, lying—in the interest of defending the faith. Some argue that fatwas should not be taken seriously because they are by nature malleable. They can be disputed by rival religious authorities or...

In “They sell sea shells” (April 7th 2012) we wrote that “several companies, including global giants such as BAE Systems, have been caught using shells [shell companies] to pay bribes to officials posing as consulting firms”. To clarify, BAE Systems in 2010 announced a settlement with the US Department of Justice and Britain’s Serious Fraud Office. Under the agreement it pleaded guilty to one count of making false statements to the US Government and one charge of false accounting in the UK. It was reported in the judgment that BAE Systems had made covert payments to foreign advisers via shell companies and made false statements about its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act compliance programme, in addition to other statutory violations. However it was not charged with bribery. We are happy to make that clear.

THE Merkozy era is over. So how to label the partnership of Angela Merkel and François Hollande? Merging first names to make Frangela is too familiar for leaders who barely know each other. Homer is too American (or worse, Greek). Merkollande sounds too close to Merkozy. That leaves just the shortened Merde, which at least sums up the state of the euro.In fact, the Merkozy duo was unique in having a nickname. It was coined at the height of the euro crisis last year to mock a duumvirate that had become exclusive, dictatorial and sometimes comical in the way a weakened Mr Sarkozy pretended to be the equal of the powerful German chancellor. Mr Hollande wants a different sort of partnership. He flew to Berlin after his inauguration in Paris to emphasise the importance and continuity of Franco-German relations. Unlike Mr Sarkozy, who would pretend to be in perfect agreement with Mrs Merkel, Mr Hollande was not shy about saying he did not see the world the same way.In the coming weeks the two sides will discuss how to reconcile the fiscal compact, the Merkel-inspired treaty to enforce budget discipline, with Mr...

Après Sarkozy, le déluge FIRST he got soaked in heavy rain when parading in an open-topped car. Then his plane was struck by lightning just after take-off, forcing him to return to Paris and get another. François Hollande, who was sworn in on May 15th, promised a “normal” presidency, but his first few hours turned out anything but. Yet Mr Hollande seemed unperturbed, focusing instead on setting the tone for what he billed as a presidency of “dignity but simplicity”.With a slow presidential walk and a solemn look modelled on the Fifth Republic’s only previous Socialist president, François Mitterrand, Mr Hollande climbed up the Elysée steps, briefly waved goodbye to his predecessor, Nicolas Sarkozy, and promised the French “calm, reconciliation and unity”. Before heading off to summits in America, the leader who has never held ministerial office chose his prime minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, dropped in (late) on Berlin for his first meeting with Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, and formed his first government.In Mr Ayrault, the 62-year-old leader of the Socialist parliamentary group...

Merkel under fire ANGELA MERKEL does not indulge in melodrama. So when the German chancellor speaks of a “bitter day” and a “painful defeat”, the bitterness and pain are real. On May 13th her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) had its worst-ever election in Germany’s most populous state, North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). The Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the Greens won, and hope to again in next year’s federal election, ousting Mrs Merkel.Some saw the NRW result as another revolt against Mrs Merkel’s policy of austerity. The SPD’s leaders have launched a growth programme conceived “in close accord” with France’s new president, François Hollande. The policies of Mrs Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy, the defeated French president, have “failed across the board,” said Sigmar Gabriel, the SPD chairman.In fact, the NRW vote had little to do with Europe or (despite nine campaign appearances) with Mrs Merkel. Her SPD predecessor, Gerhard Schröder, called early federal elections (and lost) after losing in NRW in 2005. Mrs Merkel has no such plans. She is Germany’s most popular politician and hopes for...