Iran Slams Nuclear Powers At UN Conference

Iran has demanded that countries possessing nuclear weapons scrap any plans to modernize or extend the life of their atomic arsenals.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was speaking in New York on April 27 at the start of a five-year review conference of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

Zarif also repeated the call for a Middle East free of nuclear weapons and called Israel a threat to the region due to its presumed nuclear stockpile.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told the global gathering on nuclear disarmament that the hard work of reaching a nuclear agreement with Iran is "far from over, and key issues remain unresolved."

Kerry said "there is the potential for historic progress" toward a nuclear-free world if a deal is reached, and added, "If we can get there, the entire world will be safer."

World powers and Iran sealed a framework agreement on April 2 that would limit Iran's ability to build a nuclear weapon.

They face a deadline of June 30 for a comprehensive accord.

Based on reporting by AP and Reuters