Kerry and Moniz flew to Vienna in late June to see if they could close the deal. Obama told Kerry that he had to be willing to walk away. “John,” he said, referring to the victories on healthcare and same-sex marriage, “I’ve already got my legacy. I don’t need this.” Kerry said he understood, but he was also after his own legacy—he’d spent hundreds of hours in negotiations with the Iranians, and built a close relationship with the Iranian foreign minister, Javad Zarif. Moniz had also developed a close relationship with his Iranian counterpart, who had attended MIT while Moniz was teaching
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