hello there. you're watching the news hour live from london. coming up deal done. iran and world powers agree an outline nuclear agreement in switzerland. more than 70 dead and hundreds still unaccounted more after al shabaab gunmen attack a college in northeast kenya.

we begin this news hour by listening to the iranian foreign minister zarif who is now answering questions at that press conference. today you have achieved a lot. it was a huge achievement. we witnessed it was a very long process.

if it's possible to -- have you thought about the future of it is the translation available. >> today, what we have found solutions after reaching a come prehencive agreement in reality, it was based on a vision based

on -- situation in international politics. based on all sanctions against islamic republic of iran will be lift lifted and meanwhile, the iranian nuclear program will continue but we will take actions and measures for the satisfaction of the international community. the framework which activities -- that will

continue. including the research and development in the domain of the cooperation of the international community. the hydroreacter will stay at a place considering the current development different countries in this regard including p5+1 and other countries will cooperate with us meanwhile in

other domains including the development and establishment of this basis the support and cooperation with iran will be initiated. these are the areas the international communities denied supporting iran. i have mentioned this many times that we are seeking and looking

on the commitment of the international community and we are not -- all u.n. resolutions will be canceled. it is a very significant effort on the islamic republic of iran. in some aspect we still require in the next three months to further discuss the details and because of this some of thosethose those -- were very general.

lead us to the final agreement, the final agreement is -- in which the final agreement is based on the national interest of iran and the people of iran and it will be on the -- through a resolution -- u.n. resolution. and i would like to make a statement to the iranian people that we will continue negotiating for further three

months. we are hopeful that with the support of your iranian people and with the direction of the islamic republic of iran and with the cooperation of all stakeholders in these negotiations, these talks, it is necessary would ask the head of the atomic program of iran and all those friends who have previously --

currently speaking is the iranian foreign minister. speaking in farsi as well as english english. the people of iran have been waiting anxiously to see what deal was going to arrive but after weeks of negotiations we finally do have a breakthrough. they have reached a framework agreement ahead of what will be acomprehensive accord which is meant to be drafted by june 30th. john kerry, secretary of state,

immediately took to twitter saying it's a big deal but work must continue to reach that final deal. in the last few minutes, the u.n. foreign policy chief read out a statement detailing iran's side of that deal. it will be converted from an enrichment site to a nuclear physics and technology center. international collaboration will be encouraged in agreed areas of research. there will be -- there will not

be any -- >> we have reestablished that link to the press conference where the iranian foreign minister is still taking questions. >> iran u.s. relations has nothing to do with this. this was an attempt to resolve the nuclear issue and i'm grateful to everybody who participated. secretary kerry participated in this with a great deal of personal interest and invested a great deal of time and energy and he dealt with the iranian delegation with mutual respect and i believe that's made it possible for us to move forward. but we have serious differences with the united states. we have built mutual misrust in the past. and i hope that good implementation of this and -- commitment to the obligation that each side has taken or will take because no agreement has been reached, so we do not have

any obligation yet. >> . >> considering the previous bad experiences which we have from western walls, what do you think how committed they would be to this joint statement? the joint statement that was read today and the solutions which we have found today with

the help of allah over the next three months we have -- we have some outcomes and in the case they were not respected, it is not good to talk about those which will have a reaction. specifically in the previous years years, the actions that they

took against people because of the sanctions imposed by them because of violations and because they couldn't access medical -- from the international market. but with the grace of allah and determination of our nation our people had access to all these these -- they have passed a message to the world that iranians iranians, people of iran will continue to defend with dignity and one thing that these good people have demonstrated as mentioned by the leadership they have exhibited, they are

willing and have -- are interested in resolving issues. they are willing to observe everything and they know how to deal with the international community. all those who didn't have good experience in the past they can use our experiences for the future. >> have you all genuinely been able to come up with solutions on the rnd and u.n. security council issues and what solutions have you not been able to agree by tonight? >> actually we have a general picture of what each one of these will look like. of course we need to write it down. iranian rnd will continue. iran will continue its rnd on ir

4, ir 5, ir 6, and ir 8 on a schedule basis that the equal with our own scientific requirements. that's what we're going to do. there is agreement that all security council resolutions will be terminated. it will be an end of security council resolutions that have been adopted against iran starting from resolution 1696 and ending with resolution 1929. all of them will be terminated. now, there will be certain limitations that some countries wish to impose against the islamic republic and those limitations which do not include limitations in areas of finance, trade, and economy, and may include from their perspective for the operational areas may continue for in our view a brief period of time and then

suspended and terminated. this is the gist of the agreement but we hope to be able to work out the final details of all of these agreements as we go on in the next three months. it is a major issue that we need to put in writing and then present to the security council as a draft resolution which will not be presented by iran in fact but presented by members of the p 3 plus 3. >> mr. minister my question is what if claims of violations are made? have you considered mechanisms about -- is there a system? >> yes. we have discussed, of course this has to be fine tuned and then put in the form of a text

that will be a part of the agreement. we have in fact been able to develop actually an elaborate mechanism in order to deal with it. all of the participants in this process are interested in seeing that this resolution gets implemented. if we reach an agreement we can implement the agreement. we're not looking for excuses to violate them. we are looking for safeguards to protect our interests if one side decides to violate its obligations. iran has been the victim of many, many broken promises in the past and we want to be sure

that if promises are broken again, we will be safe and our national interests will not be forgotten or compromised. and that is why we have put in there an elaborate mechanism that will not allow, will not allow excuses to simply lead to a reversal of the system but provide the necessary confidence to all participants that they have the necessary confidence that they can continue with the implementation in good faith. and i really hope that all of us who have spent probably we make history last night by spending nine hours from 9:00 o'clock to 6:00 in the morning negotiateing. that is probably a record.

and will change the nature of this exercise that has been a counterproductive exercise over the past ten years. thank you all very much. that's the iranian foreign minister wrapping up the press conference with what he calls a win-win situation. he says we still have serious problems with the u.s. but we hope to overcome that. what does this mean? james joins us live. i guess the question is when is a deal not a deal. important to stress that. this is the basis of the deal.

>>reporter: absolutely. is this an agreement or is it not an agreement. you heard them at the end there say all those sleepless nights wouldn't have been worth it if there's something here that they've come up with today that will be torn up later on and will be violated by either side. but then you also heard him say what he actually believes legally is the situation now. this is not an agreement yet. there are no obligations on

anyone. the phrase framework agreement is not being used now but i think that's what they're hoping it will be in terms of their negotiations with senators on capitol hill saying look at the concessions we got from iran. this is working. we're getting a peaceful solution. sanctions at this time would destroy everything. >> okay james, so assuming this is the basis of a deal and the deal goes according to plan tell us the highlights. what are the key things in this agreement? >>reporter: we're told by western sources the total timeline is 25 years with the tightest restrictions over ten years and they're saying western

diplomats we've spoken to that basically two-thirds of iran's nuclear capacity will be restricted during that period. they say 95% of iran's stock pile of enriched uranium will then be shipped out of the country. there are all sorts of restrictions on iran's nuclear facilities. each of the nuclear facilities you heard mentioned in the statement read out by the eu high representative dealt with in detail how they will be dealt with. in return iran had said that it wanted all of the sanctions lifted. it has now accepted that they're not all going to be lifted. we understand that there will be a new u.n. security council resolution because the only way to get rid of the old ones is a new one.

the foreign minister referred to it as something that still needs to be worked out. there are key issues still to be worked out on the timeline of the final deal which, remember is june 30th. that was set originally in that joint plan of action which has been extended several times origin originally passed in november until the end of june which will be the next key ninety this long running saga but this key point which at times it looked like it

could have ended in some sort of break down has ended in this public announcement. whether it's an agreement or not, a frame work agreement, whether congress will be satisfied with this whether it will help the administration on capitol hill is not clear. it's clear there are other places around the world where they will not be satisfied and one of those is israel where there's already been a great deal of criticism on twitter from the israeli prime minister. >> thank you for a moment, james. israel has of course been deeply critical of the talks with iran since the very beginning of this process. let's go live to jerusalem. any reaction so far? >>reporter: we've reached out to the prime minister's office several times. they have not provided us with any kind of statement -- apologies. but the president of the united states is speaking. >> has reached a historic understanding with iran which if

fully implemented will prevent it from obtaining a nuclear weapon. as president and commander in chief, i have no greater responsibility than the security of the american people. i'm convinced that if this framework leads to a final comprehensive deal it will make our country, our allies and our world safer. i made clear that we were prepared to resolve this issue diplomatically but only if iran came to the table in a serious way. when that did not happen we rallied the world to impose the toughest sanctions in history.

sanctions which had a profound impact on the iranian economy. now, sanctions alone would not stop iran's nuclear program but they did help bring iran to the negotiating table. because of our diplomatic efforts, the world stood with us and we were joined at the negotiating by the world's major powers, the u.k. france russia germany, china, as well as the european union. over a year ago, we took the first step towards today's frame work with a deal to stop the progress of iran's nuclear program and roll it back in key areas. it has proceeded exactly as

intended. iran has met all of its obligations. it eliminated its stock pile of dangerous nuclear materials. inspections of iran's program increased. and we continued to negotiate to see if we could reach a more comprehensive deal. and today after many months of tough, principled diplomacy, we have achieved the framework for that deal. and it is a good deal. a deal that meets our core objectives. this framework would cut off every pathway that iran could take to develop a nuclear weapon. iran will face strict limitations on its program and iran has also agreed to the most robust and intrusive inspections and transparency regime ever negotiated for any nuclear program in history. so this deal was not based on trust. it's based on unprecedented

verification. nothing is agreed to until everything is agreed. here are the basic outlines of the deal we're working to finalize. first, iran will not be able to pursue a bomb using plutonium because it will not develop weapons-grade plutonium. the core of its weapon in iraq will be dismantled and replaced. second, this deal shuts down iran's path to a bomb using enriched uranium. iran has agreed to reduce installed

installed centrifuges by at least two-thirds. even if it violated the deal for the next decade at least, iran would be a minimum of a year away from acquiring enough material for a bomb. and the strict limitations on iran's stock pile will last for 15 years. international inspectors will have unprecedented access not

only to iranian nuclear facilities but to the entire supply chain that supports iran's nuclear program from uranium mills that provide the raw materials to the centrifuge production and storage facilities that support the program. if iran cheats the world will know it. if we see something suspicious, we will inspect it. iran's past efforts to weaponize its program will be addressed. with this deal iran will face more inspections than any other country in the world. the transparency measures will

last for 20 years or more and iran will never be permitted to develop a nuclear weapon. our own sanctions and international sanctions imposed by the united nations security council. this relief will be phased as iran takes steps to adhere to the deal. if iran violates the deal sanctions could be snapped back into place. meanwhile, other american sanctions on iran for its support of terrorism, human rights abuses ballistic missile pre fully enforced. let me re-emphasize our work is not yet done. the deal has not been signed. between now and the end of june the negotiators will continue to work through the details of how this frame work will be fully implemented and those details

matter. if the verification and inspection mechanisms don't meet the specifications of our nuclear and security experts, there will be no deal. but if we can get this done and iran follows through on the framework that our negotiators agree to, we will be able to resolve one of the greatest threats to our security and to do so peacefully. i welcome a robust debate in the weeks and months to come. i'm confident that we can show that this deal is good for the security of the united states our allies and the world. the fact is we only have three options for addressing iran's nuclear program.

first, we can reach a robust and verifiable deal like this one and peacefully prevent iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. knowing that every time we have done so iran has not capitulated but instead has advanced their program. and a nuclear arms race in the region could be triggered because of that uncertainty.

in other words the third option leads us quickly back to the decision whether or not to take military action because we had no idea what was going on inside of iran. iran is not going to simply dismantle its program because we demand it to do so. that's not how the world works and that's not what history shows us. should negotiations collapse because we the united states rejected what we considered a fair deal. what our scientists and nuclear experts suggest would give us confidence that they're not developing a nuclear weapon. it's doubtful that we can even keep our current international sanctions in place.

so when you hear of the inevitable critics of the deal sound off, ask them a simple question. do you really think that this verifiable deal if fully implemented, backed by the world's major powers is a worse option than a risk of another war in the middle east. is it worse than doing what we've done for almost two decades with iran moving forward with its nuclear program and without robust inspections? i think the answer will be clear. remember i have always insisted that i will do what is necessary to prevent us from acquiring a nuclear weapon and i will. but i also know that a diplomatic solution is the best way to get this done and offers a more comprehensive and lasting solution. it is our best option by far. while it is always a possibility

that iran may try to cheat on the deal in the future this framework of inspections and transparency makes it far more likely that we'll know about it if they try to cheat and i and future presidents will have preserved all of the options that are currently available to deal with it. so the iranian people i want to reample what i've said since the againing of my presidency. we're willing to engage you on the basis of mutual interest and respect. this deal offers the prospect of relief from sanctions imposed because of iran's violation of international law. this gives iran the opportunity to in fact verify that its program is peaceful. it demonstrates that if iran complies it can fully rejoin the community of nations thereby

fulfilling the extraordinary talent and aspirations of the iranian people. that would be good for iran and for the world. of course this deal alone, even if fully implemented will not end the deep divisions and mistrust between our two countries. we will remain vigilant in standing with our actions. it's no secret that the israeli prime minister and i don't agree about whether the united states should move forward with a peaceful resolution to the

iranian issue. if prime minister neath yahoo -- i believe our nuclear experts can confirm that. more importantly, i will be speaking with the prime minister today to make clear that there will be no daylight. there is no daylight. that's why i've directed my national security team to consult closely with the new israeli government in the coming weeks and months about how we can further strengthen our long-term security cooperation with israel and make clear our unshakeable commitment to israel's defense. today i also spoke with the king of saudi arabia to reaffirm our commitment to the security of our partners in the gulf and i'm envieding the leaders of the six

people that make up the gulf council to meet me at camp david this spring to discuss how we can further strengthening our security cooperation and resolve multiple conflicts throughout the middle east. finally, it's worth remembering that congress has on a bipartisan basis played a critical role in our current iran policy. helping to shape the sanctions regime that applied so much pressure on iran and ultimately forced them to the table. we will engage congress in the coming weeks about how it can play an instructive oversight role. i'll begin that by speaking to the house and senate today. i will underscore that the issues at stake here are bigger than politics. these are matters of war and

peace and they should be evaluated based on the facts and what is ultimately best for the american people. and for our national security. this is a deal between iran the united states of america, and the major powers in the world including some of our closest allies. if congress kills this deal not based on expert analysis and without offering any reasonable alternative, then the united states will be blamed for the failure of diplomacy, international unity will collapse and the path to conflict will widen. the people understand this. they understand instinctively the words of president kennedy who faced down the far greater

threat of communism and said let us never negotiate out of fear but let us never fear to negotiate. the american people remember that at the height of the cold war, presidents like nixon and reagan struck historic arms control agreements with the soviet union. a far more dangerous adversary. despite the fact that that adversary not only threatened to destroy our country and our way of life but had the means to do so. they did not end all threats but they made our world safer. a good deal with iran will do the same. today i'd like to express my thanks to our international partners for their steadfastness, cooperation.

i was able to speak earlier today with them to reaffirm that we stand shoulder to shoulder in this effort and most of all on behalf of our nation i want to express my thanks to our tireless and i mean tireless secretary of state john kerry and our entire negotiating team. they have worked so hard to make this progress. their work, our work is not yet done and success is not guaranteed. but we have a historic opportunity to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons in iran and to do it peacefully with the international community behind us. we should seize that chance. thank you. god bless you. god bless the united states of

america. that's the u.s. president giving his reaction to the fact that the basis of a deal between iran and the p5+1 has been agreed in the last two hours or so. >> this would be just an absolute huge contribution to the president's legacy. basically it was sending the message also to congress to first let's let the deal get done. if it gets done do not mess

with it. he basically said that congress could basically blow up the deal but it's not yet clear to me that, that's what would happen because it seems to me the other partners in the deal could go ahead and continue that which seems to me to leave the united states isolated and the iranian economy improving. he's talking about the sanctions. he talked about for groups -- >> apologies because the u.s. secretary of state john kerry is speaking. >> thank you. thank you for the government of switzerland for their incredible generosity, the way they have welcomed us and their amount of effort is really extraordinary and we're so grateful to them.

throughout this entire process, certainly over the past week -- facilitate these negotiations and i don't think that anybody could imagine a much more peaceful setting in order to pursue a peaceful path forward. i also want to thank the other nations that have provided a home to these negotiations over the past couple of years. people forget that it's been going on that long. and that included austria which was incredibly generous in hosting our delegation in vienna for a long period of time. of course we say thank you to turkey russia iraq and my home

country, the united states. i particularly want to thank president obama. he has been courageous and determined in his pursuit of a diplomatic path and from the day that he took office president obama has been crystal clear that a nuclear-armed iran would pose a threat to our security and the security of our allyings in the region including israel. he has been just as clear that the best and most effective way to prevent that threat is through diplomacy.

others on this journey for even longer than that. but as was announced moments ago, today we have reached a critical milestone in that quest. we are p5+1 eu partners and iran have arrived at a consensus on the key parameters of an arrangement that once implemented will give the international community confidence that iran's nuclear program is and will remain ex-inclusively peaceful. and over the coming weeks, with all of the conditions of the 2013 joint plan of action still in effect from this moment forward, our experts will continue to work hard to build

on the parameters that we have arrived at today and finalize a comprehensive deal by the end of june. today, i can tell you that the political understanding with details that we have reached is a solid foundation for the good deal that we are seeking. it is the foundation for a deal that will see iran reduce its stock pile of enriched uranium by 98% for 15 years. it's a deal by which iran will cut its installed centrifuges by more than two-thirds for ten years. it is a deal that will increase

iran's breakout time this was confirmed publicly to be about two or three months and that is the time it would take iran to speed up its enrichment in order to produce enough material for one potentially nuclear weapon and that will be expanded now under this deal to one year from those two to three months. that is six times what it is today and has been for the past three years. i'd like also to make one more point very very clear because it has been misinterpreted and misstated and misrepresented for much of this discussion. the parameters of this agreement will be implemented in phases.

some provisions will be in place for ten years. others for 15. others still will be in place for 25 years. but certain provisions including many transparency measures will be in place indefinitely into the future. they will never expire and the bottom line is that under this arrangement, the international community will have confidence that iran's nuclear program is exclusively peaceful providing, of course that the provisions are adhered to and if they aren't we have provisions that empower us to deal with that.

we our partners, and iran have agreed that the only uranium enrichment facility iran will operate moving forward will be -- and even that one will undergo dramatic changes. the vast majority of the centrifuges centrifuges and their infrastructure will be removed and for at least the next 15 years, the stock pile will remain at 300 kilograms and any uranium that is enriched will be capped at 3.67% which is a typical level of enrichment for civilian nuclear power but doesn't even begin to approach

the enrichment level necessary for a weapon. we have also agreed that iran will redesign and rebuild its heavy water reactor so that it will no longer produce any weapons-grade plutonium and the united states will be able to sign off and certify the final redesign of the reactor.

we have agreed that iran has shipped all of its spent fuel -- the next 15 years. it's the best possible way to detect any attempt the

centrifuges themselves and the uranium that supports the nuclear program, and they will be able to do that for at least 20 years. this critical step will help to guard against diversion of those materials to any clandestine location or plant. in addition, iran has agreed to allow iaea to investigate any suspicious site or any allegations of coverity nuclear activities anywhere. so these are just a few of the key -- and i mean a few -- of the key measures that will make up an extraordinarily comprehensive monitoring and transparency regime when and if it is finally signed and completed over the course of the next months. now, we have been very clear

both publicly and privately, a final agreement will not rely on promises. it will rely on proof. it is important to note that iran to date has honored all of the commitments that it made under the joint plan of action that we agreed to in 2013. and i ask you to think about that against the backdrop of those who predicted that it would fail and not get the job done. and in return for iraq's future cooperation, we and our international partners will provide relief in phases from the sanctions that have impacted iran's economy. and if we find at any point that iran is not complying with this agreement, the sanctions can snap back into place. so together these parameters outline a reasonable standard

that iran can readily meet and it is the standard that iran has now agreed to meet. throughout history, diplomacy has been necessary to prevent wars and to define international boundaries to design institutions and to develop global norms. you're watching the u.s. secretary of state john kerry giving a press conference about the parameters of a deal that have been agreed between the international community and iran. kerry says the political understanding reached on thursday is a solid foundation for a good deal but we are seeking between iran and the world powers. it's a historic day. the secretary of state still speaking. we'll have more details including the finer details of this basis of a deal that's been agreed with david foster in a couple of minutes. do stay with us.

>> part of al jazeera america's >> special month long evironmental focus fragile planet today, the united states together with our allies and partners has reached a historic understanding with iran. >> a nuclear agreement between world powers and iran after decades of negotiations. good to have you with us. you're watching al jazeera live from london. also coming up in the next 30 minutes, al shabaab gunmen kill 147 at a kenyan university. more students are still unaccounte