Secret Negotiations and the Risky Strategy

The speaker recounts their surprise at being approached to open a new channel with the Iranians to discuss American prisoners, and how they began secret negotiations facilitated by the Swiss. They discuss the necessity of conducting these negotiations outside of the media and Congress's attention, and the challenges faced during the first meeting. The chapter also mentions the Obama administration's risky strategy of negotiating the nuclear deal while conducting a secret parallel track to secure the release of American prisoners.