US-Iran: "First create trust by seeking a deal on Afghanistan – it's a mess for both"

In the CSM, here

"...The new administration is eager to catch a meeting in any international forum that might lead to one-on-one talks. If US diplomats do snag a secret negotiation, they'd be smart to start with the one issue in which Iran and America share a strong common interest: Afghanistan. .....

By working together on a mutual desire to stabilize Taliban-threatened Afghanistan (and to some degree, Pakistan), the two longtime enemies must build enough trust to tackle the more difficult issues that will require onerous trade-offs............

And while Iran hints of offering a compromise for a new round of talks on its nuclear program, the biggest road bump is Iran's great distrust of the US. It feels burned after it helped President Bush in the 2001 US invasion of Afghanistan, only then to be tagged as a part of an "axis of evil." It is not sure whether Mr. Obama might succumb to domestic or Israeli pressure and reverse course on any deal..."