(Reuters) -�Iran�would not necessarily have to ship its stockpile of highly enriched uranium abroad under a nuclear pact with major powers, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said on Monday.

"You don't have to ship it out of the country to get to a year breakout time," she said in a conference call, referring to the goal of stretching the amount of time it would take�Iran�to acquire enough fissile material to make one atomic bomb.

"You can have some other dispositions for it that get us where we need to be in terms of our bottom line," Harf said.

Iran�and six major powers are seeking to negotiate a deal under which Tehran would halt its most sensitive nuclear work in return for an easing of the economic sanctions crimping its�economy.

Echoing earlier U.S. statements, Harf said there was an even chance of reaching an agreement. "We still see a path to get a political understanding," she said. "There is still a path to do this. I would probably say (a) 50-50 chance we will get it done."
�Tuesday is the self-imposed deadline for Britain,�China,�France,�Germany,�Russia�and the United States to strike a framework nuclear deal with�Iran.
While several officials have told Reuters that�Iran�indicated willingness to send most of its enriched uranium away for storage in�Russia, senior Iranian negotiator Abbas Araqchi said on Sunday that sending stockpiles abroad "was not on Iran's agenda."

Harf said that the two sides had never had an agreement on shipping enriched uranium abroad and said there were different ways to achieve the U.S. goal of extending Iran's "breakout time" to one year.

"For months we have been talking with�Iran�about the different ways they can get rid of that stockpile. One is obviously dilution in country, as they have been doing. One is shipping it overseas," Harf said. "This is one we have to resolve, but we haven't yet."

By Reuters