How soon is right now?

How soon is right now?

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's president, said on Tuesday that he had written a letter to Barack Obama, his US counterpart.

The contents were not revealed, but he hinted that it included a piece of advice for Obama - grab the opportunity, resume ties with Iran, this is your only chance of achieving anything during your presidency.

His tone was unbelievably soft, even sympathetic at times, when he spoke about Obama.

He said it would be unfair to say Obama has failed to deliver his promise and has not made any changes during the first year of his time in office.

But most interesting of all, was the president's comment about a mystical "formula" that, if found, could safeguard Iran's interests in dealing with the US.

Many Iranians, still suspicious of any kind of co-operation with the West, truly wish that such a formula existed. 

But President Ahmadinejad said that if the formula could be found, Iran would start co-operation with the US "right now".

A few minutes later in his televised interview, he said that no power in the world, the US government included, could even threaten Iran's interests anymore.

I see that as a signal to Iranian people, that the long-desired interest-safeguarding formula has been found at last. It has Ahmadinejad's name on it. It doesn't seem difficult to deduct that the time for starting co-operation with the United States of America is "right now". 

But how soon is "right now"? 

No one really knows. But I believe a lot depends on President Obama and his willingness to listen to Ahmadinejad's advice and grab the opportunity.

With Iran's economy in tatters, and a new round of UN Security Council sanctions against Iran  looming, tomorrow maybe too late.