Iran, U.S. begin talks in Geneva

Much talked about high-level discussions between U.S. and Iranian officials have begun in Switzerland:

A senior US official met Iran's top atomic negotiator for face-to-face talks on Thursday - the first such encounter in years of big-power attempts to persuade Teheran to freeze a program that could create nuclear weapons.

While diplomats and officials disclosed no details of the meeting, they appeared to be concrete proof of President Barack Obama's commitment to engage Iran directly on nuclear and other issues, in a sharp break with the previous Bush administration.