The Director for Nonproliferation Policy at the Arms Control Association fears that the extension of the deadline for the Iranian nuclear program agreement will destroy all current breakthrough.WASHINGTON, November 25 (Sputnik) Extending the deadline forthe P5+1 and Iran toreach a nuclear agreement untilJune 30 provides opponents inUS Congress withmore time toundermine any potential deal, an arms control expert has told Sputnik News Agency.
"With the extension it is certainly more difficult because it gives critics room totake measures that could derail the progress that has been made thus far and push the sides away fromthe negotiating table," Kelsey Davenport, Director forNonproliferation Policy atthe Arms Control Association, said.
Iran has fulfilled all ofits commitments thus far and is not going tomove towardsdeveloping nuclear weapons inthe meantime, she stressed."The interim agreement has frozen Iran's nuclear program and has put inplace stringent monitoring and verification mechanisms. And all ofthese measures will remain inplace underthe interim deal. Iran's program will remain frozen witha camera onit," Davenport explained.
Iran and the P5+1 powers agreed toextend the political deadline toMarch 2015, atwhich point they would assess if a path toa final deal existed beforefinalizing a comprehensive agreement bythe end ofJune, Secretary ofState John Kerry said ata press briefing inVienna onMonday.
Iran's nuclear program has been a matter ofconcern fora number ofcountries, withthe West accusing Tehran ofdeveloping nuclear weapons underthe guise ofcivilian activities, which Iranian authorities have denied.
Due tothe controversy surrounding the country's nuclear program, Iran has been a target ofsanctions fromthe UN Security Council, the European Union, the United States and several other nations.
By Sputnik News
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