Washington, DC – The National Iranian American Council welcomes the successful first meeting between representatives of the permanent five members of the Security Council plus Germany and Iran yesterday.

Members of the Iranian-American community are particularly pleased that the issue of human rights in Iran was also raised during the talks.

While there are limits to how much progress can be made in one meeting, yesterday’s outcome demonstrates that President Obama’s strategy of direct diplomatic engagement with Iran offers the best hope for resolving the conflict with Iran and addressing the human rights situation in Iran.

Already, the diplomatic approach pursued by the Obama administration in the past eight months has yielded more positive results for the US than the bellicose policy pursued by the Bush administration did in eight years. If anything, yesterday’s outcome serves to remind us of one important fact: diplomacy can succeed.

However, a successful beginning does not guarantee a successful ending. To make diplomacy successful and sustainable for the purpose of resolving US-Iran tensions and bringing stability to the region, the agenda must be broadened to include regional security as well as an expanded focus on the Iranian government’s human rights abuses.