A face-to-face meeting could be the result of a series of letters exchanged between US President Barack Obama and Iran’s new President Hassad Rouhani, a leader viewed as a moderate and a welcome break from the belligerence of his predecessor.

The two might meet as early as next week at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.  It would be the first face-to-face encounter between a US and Iranian leader since Iran's 1979 revolution.

Iran already approached the UK and arranged a surprise meeting between Foreign Minister William Hague and his Iranian Counterpart Mohammed Javad Zarif.  The hope is that all of this new openness to contact with the west will help break the stalemate over Iran’s nuclear program.

In an interview recorded on Friday with the ABC television network in the US, Obama said, “What they should draw from this lesson is that there is the potential of resolving these issues diplomatically.  You know, negotiations with the Iranians are always difficult.  I think this new president is not going to suddenly make it easy.  But you know, my view is that if you have both a credible threat of force, combined with a rigorous diplomatic effort, that, in fact you can strike a deal.”