James King

And

Apparently, the talks broke down over the question of the Iranian reserves of enriched uranium, and they couldn't find any kind of a solution on that front.

But I wouldn't be surprised if at some point in the future, China will be back in the frame as a kind of a mediator.

helping to influence Muslim countries like Pakistan, with which China has very close relations, to try to mediate some kind of a settlement in this.

Ike, terrific to have you on.

Let me just kick off with, I think, what is a today angle on this story.

Chun-Li Wen, the leader of Taiwan's main opposition party, the Kuomintang, or the KMT,

just met with China's leader Xi Jinping on Friday, and therefore she became the first KMT leader to visit the mainland in over a decade.

I'm just wondering what you make of this.

Is this just a sideshow, or is it a sign of some interesting movement, perhaps, between mainland China and Taiwan?

It's so useful to get the proper historical perspective and how all of the politics of the moment fit together around this issue.

But as a China watcher, pretty much whenever we attend a public event,

the first question or one of the questions we always get asked is, do you think China will invade Taiwan?

And you've just mentioned what you think Xi Jinping's diplomatic priorities are with regard to Taiwan.

But let me just draw you, if I can, into that kind of invasion scenario.

We hear about a quarantine strategy or a quarantine scenario that the mainland could undertake with regard to Taiwan.

Could you just

clear up what you think of that whole nexus of really sort of incendiary questions lead to.

Do you think that Xi Jinping could invade Taiwan?

They're less confident when it's things you can't.