The departure of Mr. Ali Larijani at this critical moment in Iran's discussions with the International Atomic Energy Agency, and just days ahead of the scheduled meeting between him and Mr. Javier Solana the EU foreign policy chief could not have come at a worst time.  He is a conservative, clever and pragmatic politician and the person hopes were pinned on to peacefully deal with the crisis over Iran's nuclear enrichment program.  Larijani had succeeded in gaining the trust of the IAEA and Solana and the international community and keeping negotiations alive.  His replacement, Mr. Saeed Jalili, a deputy foreign minister who lacks the experience necessary and is a close associate of President Ahmadinejad, does not point to any sign of flexibility on the nuclear question. Larijani was present at the Rome talks next to Jalili as a special representative of Ayatollah Khamenei, and the talks have been described as "constructive" by both sides, although there were no breakthroughs and further ones scheduled for late November. By then the Iran is expected to answers all the remaining questions the IAEA has posed regarding its nuclear program, with a report due on November 16th by its head Dr. Mohammad ElBaradei.

A lot depends on the outcome of all the above, but Iran is still not in the clear until it fulfills the UN Security Council's demand to suspend enrichment and ratifies the Additional Protocol of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Further sanctions are being considered and France has pressed for increased economic and diplomatic pressure on Iran.  The United States in the meantime has just announced new sanctions against the Iranian military, the Revolutionary Guards Corps and its Quds Force and state owned banking systems including the Bank Melli, Iran's largest.  The United States and Europe are clearly increasing the pressure on Iran due to the delay in the UN Security Council for a third tougher set of sanctions by Russia and China who oppose these measures saying they are leading to a dead end. 

In addition, the rhetoric from the United States has grown sharper, with President George W. Bush warning that an Iran with nuclear weapons poses a world threat and could lead to World War III, followed by Vice President Dick Cheney's warning of "serious consequences" if Tehran did not halt its enrichment program.  A further indication of possible military action in the near future was Tony Blair's recent speech in New York in which he compared militant Islamism with 1920's and 30's fascism, adding that this "deadly ideology….now has a state, Iran,.."