(JTA) — Iran may be only “days away” from complying with the nuclear deal signed last summer, according to Secretary of State John Kerry.
Iran removed most of its stockpile of enriched uranium last week, Kerry said Thursday, The Associated Press reported.
“Iran literally shipped out its capacity, currently, to build a nuclear weapon,” he said, adding that “in the next days, with the completion of their tasks, we will meet our target of being more than a year of breakout time.”
Kerry said the Obama administration plans to address Iran’s missile and other activities, including its detention of several American citizens, but he did not offer details.
Kerry said Iran’s foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, told him that Iranians plan to fulfill the obligations “as rapidly as possible.”
The deal, negotiated between Iran and six world powers including the United States, lifts economic sanctions in exchange for Iran curbing its nuclear program. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, congressional Republicans and several American Jewish organizations fiercely opposed the deal.
Republicans in Congress are advancing legislation that would undermine implementation of the deal, but it was unclear whether such efforts would draw enough support to override a presidential veto.
