John Kerry's Bike Crash will Affect Nuclear Talks with Iran

Recently, Kerry was involved in a bicycle accident while he was riding around in Switzerland. With a broken leg, travel will be difficult for him and he may not be able to continue his role in the talks at the same capacity as he has been. Even White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest admitted that U.S. nuclear talks with Iran would be affected by Kerry’s accident. He remained vague on exactly what was going to happen, stating simply that, “I’m confident that those negotiations will be affected by the secretary’s injury, but exactly how we move forward on this is something we’ll have more details on later.” 

Kerry is now in Boston for treatment, pursuing an “aggressive but responsible” course of recovery. Obama visited Kerry shortly after his accident, but has not made a statement regarding his plans for continuation of the nuclear negotiations with Iran. 

The Obama administration admitted that it was not likely that Kerry would be able to return to Europe to continue face-to-face meetings with Iranian leaders. It was not specified if he would participate through video chat, postpone talks, or have a replacement sent in his stead. No other representative who could temporarily take his place was named. 

One thing is certain: the U.S. needs to keep these talks going and do everything possible to keep nuclear weapons out of the midde east.