President is a moderate but caution is in order

AS 2014 begins, there is no more important question in world diplomacy than this: Has Iran changed?

Since his election in June, Iran’s new president, Hassan Rouhani, has signalled a more moderate stance in his country’s international relations. But caution is in order. The world’s second largest oil producer, and self-proclaimed leader of Shia Islam and anti-western Muslim revolutionaries everywhere, remains a danger not just to Saudi Arabia but also to peace and stability in the Middle East and beyond.

Saudi Arabia has two large concerns about the Islamic Republic: its quest for nuclear weapons and its interference in its neighbours’ affairs.