Far too much pride, too much prejudice

It is a truth universally acknowledged that diplomats rarely improve their chances by brandishing a weapon, especially when both sides have their backs on the wall. Iran's ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam, has channelled Jane Austen with ironic precision: 'It's a truth universally acknowledged that a single country in possession of a large Civilisation, will Not negotiate under Threat and Force.' The line takes the famous opener of Pride and Prejudice - 'It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife' - and neatly captures the absurdity of Washington expecting Tehran to sit down for talks with a gun pressed against its head. Diplomatic negotiations, like marriage proposals, are delicate affairs. A suitor doesn't woo a bride by storming her parlour with an AR-15. Nor does one persuade a nation to sit down for a chat for lasting peace by shouting, 'Sit down, else!' - in Trump's case, a threat of 'lots of bombs' going off if the 2-week ceasefire that expired yesterday saw no breakthrough.

Moghadam's Austenian flourish is a reminder of commonalities between diplomacy and courtship. Both require patience, respect and the appearance - however contrived - of equality. Strip these away and what remains is a bawling brute who needs to read another Austen novel: Persuasion.