First on Iranian response to Obama peace overture

Reuters was alone for several hours with Iran’s first response on March 20th to U.S. President Barack Obama’s video address to the Iranian people and their leaders. Enmity between the United States and Iran and Iran’s determination to pursue a nuclear programme are major factors driving oil markets. Some analysts attribute as much as $10-$20 of the price to the ‘Iran effect’. Obama’s address was seen as a conciliatory gesture. How would Iran respond? An aide to Iran’s president told Reuters: “The Iranian nation has shown that it can forget hasty behaviour but we are awaiting practical steps by the United States.” Reuters was alone with these remarks for several hours. Reuters was also alone in reading the nuance - Iran experts latched onto the fact this was not an outright rejection of Obama’s approach.