UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Iran’s new president said today that President Barack Obama struck a new tone in his U.N. speech this week that left him optimistic about easing tensions between the two countries.

Hassan Rouhani also said the recent elections that propelled him to the Iranian presidency created a “new environment” that could pave the way for better relations with the West.

Rouhani said at a news conference in New York that he did not meet with Obama on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly this week because there was not enough time to plan such a high-stakes meeting.

But he said Iran emerged hopeful from a lower-level meeting with the U.S. and its international partners aimed at restarting talks to settle their nuclear standoff.

The upbeat, if guarded, tone by both sides after Thursday’s meeting of Iran, the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany was seen as a significant step forward after months of stalled talks. It was capped by an unexpected one-on-one meeting between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who shook hands and at one point sat side-by-side in the group talks.

It was the highest-level direct contact between the United States and Iran in six years.

In another sign of building momentum, both sides agreed to fast-track negotiations and hold a substantive round of talks on Oct. 15-16 in Geneva. Iran, hoping to get relief from punishing international sanctions as fast as possible, said it hoped a resolution could be reached within a year.