Abu Dhabi: US Secretary of State John Kerry says no deal with Iran is better than a bad deal. And any deal with Iran would not allow them to own a nuclear weapon.
He was addressing a joint press conference with Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Foreign Minister.
“US President Obama is a man of his word,” Kerry said. “He said in his speech before the UN that the US will not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon and this is our policy to which we are committed.”
Kerry said the US has a strategic partnership with the UAE, Saudi Arabia and other partners in the region.
He revealed the major powers were unified on an Iran nuclear deal during talks in Geneva but the Iranians were unable to accept it.
He said they were unified on Saturday when the proposal was presented to the Iranians.
Kerry said: "The French signed off on it, we signed off on it."
But he said that Iran wasn't able to accept the deal "at that particular moment."
Kerry also says that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "needs to recognise that no agreement" with Iran has been reached and his opposition is premature.
Kerry says "the time to oppose (a deal) is when you see what it is."
He added that the US will defend its allies in the region against any threat or attack and will not undermine its strong ties with Arab allies while engaging in talks with Iran.
On Iran and the ongoing US dialogue, Kerry told the news conference that “this is not a race to complete just any agreement on nuclear programme”.
At the press conference, Shaikh Abdullah dismissed media reports about a strategic difference between the US and its allies in the region.
“There are differences in views and that happens between countries, but some media outlets exaggerated these difference and portrayed as strategic differences,” Shaikh Abdullah said.
“Our relationship with the US is at its best and Mr Kerry’s visit and talks is evidence of our strong relations.”
With inputs from AP
