The Cable
The Cable goes inside the foreign policy machine, from Foggy Bottom to Turtle Bay, the White House to Embassy Row.

P5+1: Who will represent Washington?

Who will represent the United States at the next meeting of the P5+1, scheduled to be held Feb. 4 in Germany? Per last Friday’s press briefing, the answer was Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Bill Burns. But a State Department spokesman reached Monday said the answer remains unclear. “The answer is: we don’t yet know. Obviously ...

589111_090127_burns2.jpg
589111_090127_burns2.jpg

Who will represent the United States at the next meeting of the P5+1, scheduled to be held Feb. 4 in Germany?

Who will represent the United States at the next meeting of the P5+1, scheduled to be held Feb. 4 in Germany?

Per last Friday’s press briefing, the answer was Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Bill Burns.

But a State Department spokesman reached Monday said the answer remains unclear. “The answer is: we don’t yet know. Obviously Under Secretary Burns has attended these in the past, and I’ve put in requests with his office and our NEA bureau to see if we can confirm who will attend, but we simply don’t have a definite answer at this point. As soon as I hear anything, I can certainly let you know.”

That was the answer going into the State Department press briefing as of this morning, and the State Department press office did not see anything in the prepared remarks that would indicate otherwise.

Will Dennis Ross, who some sources say will be appointed U.S. envoy on Iran, make a late-breaking appearance on the schedule?

Stay tuned. And let us know what you’re hearing.

UPDATE: A colleague notes that Clinton kept the suspense alive in her remarks today, saying: “The P5+1 talks, which will reconvene next week, I believe, are an already existing vehicle that we will again monitor. And there’s just a lot that we are considering that I’m not prepared to discuss.”

UPDATE II: A friend in the know comments, “There is no one else but Burns until and unless someone else is appointed, and they aren’t going to acknowledge the possibility of someone else until that person is actually appointed. From the minute someone is appointed, it will be like they were always there.

“As to whatever the latest meeting of this or that group is on this issue, the U.S. government will decide on its position on all of this, and whoever goes to these meetings will have their instructions.”

Photo: File; MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images

Laura Rozen writes The Cable daily at ForeignPolicy.com.

More from Foreign Policy

The USS Nimitz and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and South Korean Navy warships sail in formation during a joint naval exercise off the South Korean coast.
The USS Nimitz and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and South Korean Navy warships sail in formation during a joint naval exercise off the South Korean coast.

America Is a Heartbeat Away From a War It Could Lose

Global war is neither a theoretical contingency nor the fever dream of hawks and militarists.

A protester waves a Palestinian flag in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, during a demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. People sit and walk on the grass lawn in front of the protester and barricades.
A protester waves a Palestinian flag in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, during a demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. People sit and walk on the grass lawn in front of the protester and barricades.

The West’s Incoherent Critique of Israel’s Gaza Strategy

The reality of fighting Hamas in Gaza makes this war terrible one way or another.

Biden dressed in a dark blue suit walks with his head down past a row of alternating U.S. and Israeli flags.
Biden dressed in a dark blue suit walks with his head down past a row of alternating U.S. and Israeli flags.

Biden Owns the Israel-Palestine Conflict Now

In tying Washington to Israel’s war in Gaza, the U.S. president now shares responsibility for the broader conflict’s fate.

U.S. President Joe Biden is seen in profile as he greets Chinese President Xi Jinping with a handshake. Xi, a 70-year-old man in a dark blue suit, smiles as he takes the hand of Biden, an 80-year-old man who also wears a dark blue suit.
U.S. President Joe Biden is seen in profile as he greets Chinese President Xi Jinping with a handshake. Xi, a 70-year-old man in a dark blue suit, smiles as he takes the hand of Biden, an 80-year-old man who also wears a dark blue suit.

Taiwan’s Room to Maneuver Shrinks as Biden and Xi Meet

As the latest crisis in the straits wraps up, Taipei is on the back foot.