U.S. President Barack Obama says the framework nuclear deal reached with Iran is a "good deal" that was reached through "tough, principled diplomacy." Iran has agreed to "not stockpile" the materials needed to build a weapon, Obama said in his weekly address Saturday. The president noted that "international inspectors will have unprecedented access to Iran's nuclear program because Iran will face more inspections than any other country. If Iran cheats, the world will know it...This deal is not based on trust, it's based on unprecedented verification," the president said. Iran's President Hassan Rouhani says the framework agreement reached with world powers will protect Iran's nuclear rights and provide relief from international sanctions. In a televised address to the nation Friday, Rouhani said the agreement is an acceptance of Iran's right to enrich uranium on its own territory, saying the country will be pursing peaceful goals. He said centrifuges have to "spin," while "peoples' lives and the economy have to move forward." He also said the development of Iran's nuclear program is not against any specific country. The Iranian president vowed that Iran will honor all of its pledges in the agreement "as long as the other side honors its promises as well." Thursday's framework deal between Iran and six world powers is designed to provide relief from international sanctions in exchange for curbs on Tehran's nuclear program. The agreement was more than five years in the making and came at the end of eight days of intensive talks in Lausanne, Switzerland. It sets the stage for a final agreement to be completed by June 30. Meanwhile, the White House said President Obama is speaking about the framework deal with all four leaders of Congress, where Republican lawmakers skittish about an agreement have threatened to pass new sanctions against Iran. White House spokesman Eric Schultz said Republican criticism of the deal has been "mostly thoughtful." Schultz also said Obama would never approve a deal that was a threat to Israel. The spokesman said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's concerns about the deal have been raised and "we understand his position." Netanyahu is one of the biggest opponents of the nuclear talks. Israeli officials said the prime minister told Obama in a phone conversation on Thursday the deal would "threaten the survival of Israel." Skeptics, including Israel and Saudi Arabia, say the United States and its partners would be giving Iran too many concessions and leave it with the means to build a nuclear weapon. In a phone call with Obama, Saudi King Salman voiced hope a final settlement on the nuclear dispute would "strengthen the stability and security of the region and the world," official Saudi media reported on Friday. Iranians cheered the framework agreement with world powers. Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif returned Friday to a festive crowd of supporters in Tehran, some of whom held signs saying, "Long live Doctor Zarif, Long Live [Iranian President Hassan] Rouhani." After the deal was announced Thursday, hundreds of Iranians took to the streets of Tehran, honking their car horns and waving flags, amid fresh hopes the country's international isolation would soon end. Speaking from the White House on Thursday, President Obama praised the agreement as "historic," saying if fully implemented, it will make the world safer and cut off Iran's path to a bomb. He said the deal "meets our core objectives." Under the deal, Iran's breakout time, the minimum amount required to produce a nuclear bomb, will be extended "to at least one year, for a duration of 10 years," according to a U.S. fact sheet. The breakout time is currently estimated to be two to three months. Tehran also agreed to reduce by about two-thirds the amount of its installed uranium enrichment centrifuges. "Iran will go from having about 19,000 installed today to 6,104 installed under the deal, with only 5,060 of these enriching uranium for 10 years," according to the fact sheet. The deal requires Iran to neutralize much of its stockpile of highly enriched uranium. U.N. nuclear inspections will be boosted. The Fordo underground nuclear facility will be converted so that it cannot enrich uranium. Iran also agreed to redesign its Arak reactor to not produce weapons-grade plutonium. Iran has repeatedly said it is not interested in building a nuclear bomb, and the country's Islamic leaders have issued rulings banning such weapons; but, the moves have not been able to persuade Western critics who say certain elements of Iran's nuclear program have no clear non-weapons-related utility.
from Voice of America http://ift.tt/19XP9j5
from Voice of America http://ift.tt/19XP9j5
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