Blinken: Iran Could Be ‘Weeks’ Away From Materials for Nukes

(NEWSMAX) Iran could be a “matter of weeks” away from having enough fissile material for a nuclear weapon if it keeps violating the terms of the 2015 nuclear deal, Secretary of State Antony Blinken is warning.

The United States is willing to return to compliance with the deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) if Iran does, Blinken told NBC News’ Andrea Mitchell in an interview recorded Sunday. Former President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the agreement in 2018.

He added that the United States will then work on its allies and partners for a “longer and stronger” deal if Iran continues to lift restraints in the nuclear deal.

Meanwhile, Blinken wouldn’t say if a promise to release detained Americans, which had not been part of other negotiations on the agreement, would become a condition for an extended nuclear treaty.

“Irrespective of … any deal, those Americans need to be released. Period,” he said. “We’re going to focus on making sure that they come home one way or another.”

Hossein Salami, the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Sunday his country no longer needs an agreement with world powers on its nuclear program, reports The Times of Israel, quoting Iran’s Fars News on Sunday.

“Today, we have come to a point that we have really grown needless of the nuclear deal and we have understood that we should prioritize efforts to become needless of sanctions removal rather than staying in need of the removal of embargoes,” Salami told volunteer militia forces in Tehran, Fars reported in an English translation of his remarks.

Meanwhile, Blinken said President Joe Biden has asked his national security team to review U.S. policy about North Korea “across the board” to work out the best ways to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula after Mitchell asked him if North Korea should be recognized as a nuclear power.

Tools that could be used against North Korea could include further sanctions and diplomatic incentives, he added.