It is hard to tell who has blinked first in the standoff between Iran and the US over its nuclear programme, but it appears that the two sides are now poised to open a new chapter, albeit very slowly.

US President George Bush’s decision to dispatch US Undersecretary of State William Burns to join the talks between EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and Iranian chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili scheduled to take place in Geneva on July 19, suggests that there is a possible shift in the policies of both the US and Iran.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s words of welcome to the US decision to open a diplomatic office in Tehran also suggest that the tension between the two countries is thawing.

Against the backdrop of the Iranian president’s assurances that the international communities would be surprised by how far his country is willing to go to end the deadlock over its uranium enrichment programme, is added evidence that the prospects for a war breaking out in the region are diminishing.

No wonder oil prices tumbled recently by as much as $10 in one day. This thaw in the relations between Iran and Western countries augurs well for stability in the region.

With Israel and Syria now poised to start serious peace talks, and the Iraqi situation increasingly becoming more secure, the Middle East is maybe heading into a new era of peace and cooperation instead of armed conflict.

Once Iran is on the bandwagon of peace and reconciliation, the chances of resolving the Iraqi and Palestinian conflicts will dramatically improve. That is why much hope is being pinned on the upcoming tripartite Geneva talks between Solana, Burns and Jalili to bear fruit.