Morning Brief, Thursday, June 1

So what's the next move in the grand chess game now under way with Iran? In what Glenn Kessler calls "perhaps the biggest foreign policy shift of his presidency," Bush OKs sitting down at the table with Iran – if they suspend all nuclear activity first. Iran replied this morning with a qualified thanks. They welcome negotiations but refuse to abandon nuclear plans – for now. Translation: What's your next move?

From WaPo coverage: I would have loved to have been listening in on this call:

John R. Bolton, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, called Javad Zarif, his Iranian counterpart, before Rice's announcement to inform him of the administration's willingness to engage in direct talks.

And let's not overlook this important development that Condi quietly acquiesced to in negotiations with the Europeans. Despite vast gas and oil reserves, the Iranians can still have their nuclear energy:

But Rice's statement also offered an assurance that Iranian officials have made their central demand. "The Iranian people believe they have a right to civil nuclear energy," she said. "We acknowledge that right."

NYT on how the talks were a last resort for Bush. And Simon Tisdall on the collective sigh of relief from European capitals and how this move is a huge victory for Condi.

Let's not forget the other nuclear crisis in the axis-of-evil club: North Korea. US chief negotiator Christopher Hill has been invited to Pyongyang.

For all the benefits of negotiation, there are potent downsides: A far weaker declaration on AIDS will likely be presented tomorrow at the UNAIDS conference. Twenty-five years after AIDS was first identified, with tens of millions infected and 25 million dead, the international community apparently can't get together on the LANGUAGE.

Bush responds to questions about the Haditha incident for the first time and says he is "troubled" by the allegations of a massacre. The investigation into the incident has found that Marine officers gave false statements to their superiors. Gen. Casey will announce today that all US troops in Iraq will undergo ethics training, including how to treat civilians under the rules of engagement. Which begs the question: Did they not receive any of that training before being deployed to Iraq?

Taiwan's president cedes some powers after a corruption scandal implicates a family member. Afghanistan is falling to pieces. Bank of China jumps 15% in the world's largest IPO in six years. The president of Sri Lanka writes in the WSJ: We need help fighting the Tamil Tigers.

And fury in Finland after Eurovision winner – and demon-faced band – Lordi's lead singer is shown in a magazine without his mask. Two hundred thousand (yes, 200,000) signatures have been collected protesting the magazine's decision. "Mr. Lordi" has appealed for calm.