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Ambassador: U.S. to bring back UN sanctions if Iran violates deal

Xinhua, June 17, 2015 Adjust font size:

The United States is working to ensure that Iran sanctions be snapped back into place if the Iranians violate any nuclear agreement, Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations (UN) said Tuesday.

Speaking at the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Power did not specify the so-called snap-back mechanism at UN, but warned that UN sanctions could be reapplied to Iran if it substantially breaches terms of a deal.

"We will not support a mechanism or an agreement that includes a snap-back mechanism that leaves us vulnerable," Power said, adding that the U.S. will retain the ability to snap back multilateral sanctions in place.

Stressed that "President Obama will not accept a deal in which we do not get the access that we need to be able to ensure compliance," Power said the Obama administration will reject any final deal with Iran on curbing its nuclear program that fails to ensure access to suspect Iranian military sites.

Iran and the United States, Britain, China, France, Russia plus Germany, collectively known as the P5+1 group, are racing against the June 30 deadline for a comprehensive agreement after negotiating a framework deal in early April.

Iran has long insisted that its atomic program is only for civilian energy purposes while the West fears it could get nuclear weapons through the plan.

The U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry also talked about the nuclear negotiation on Tuesday during a news briefing via teleconference.

"Our position has not changed," Kerry said. "The talks remain tough. They are critical. And just as I have said consistently, we 're not going to rush to an agreement for the sake of an agreement, and we're not going to sign an agreement that we don't believe gets the job done." Endite