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 Rice, in an interview with Reuters, said the deal would not give
Iran any room to oppose inspections if Washington or others had
information believed to reveal a secret site that they took to the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for review.
"If the Iranians said, 'No, you can't see that site,' whether it's a
military site or not, the IAEA, if it deems the site suspicious, can
ask for access to it," she said.
If Iran refuses access but five of the eight international
signatories to the deal demand an investigation under a newly
created joint commission, Iran must comply, she said.
"It's not a request. It's a requirement," Rice said. Iran would be
"bound to grant that access."
Under the deal announced earlier this week, sanctions imposed by the
United States, European Union and United Nations will be lifted in
exchange for Iran agreeing to long-term curbs on its nuclear
program, which the West and Israel have suspected was aimed at
creating a nuclear bomb.
As part of the deal, Iran will have a 24-day period in which it can
address concerns over suspicious sites and agree to inspections.
 But the procedure does not explicitly force Iran to admit that its
military sites could be open to foreign inspections, leaving some
uncertainty over the access Iran will allow in practice.
Critics of the deal, including Republicans and Israel's government,
have said the agreement is full of loopholes, particularly when it
comes to verification and Iran's "breakout" capability - the time it
would take theoretically to develop a nuclear weapon. They have
called the 24-day period an unacceptable loophole for Iran.
Rice dismissed concerns that Iran could hide radioactive nuclear
material in what would be large facilities during that waiting
period.
"They can't hide the evidence of that in any meaningful way in that
kind of period of time. And you can't hide a facility of that size
very easily for long," she said.
Signatories to the deal include the United States, Britain, France,
Germany, Russia, China, the EU, and Iran.
Rice and other officials in President Barack Obama's administration
are advancing a broad sales pitch at home and abroad, needing to
reassure skeptical Gulf allies and Republicans in Congress who are
hostile to the deal.
CARTER TO SAUDI ARABIA
U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter will travel to Saudi Arabia as
part of the effort to convince partners in the region about the
benefits of the deal, Rice said.
The United States would also look at ways to deepen its security
cooperation with Israel, a strident opponent of the deal, she said.
Carter is traveling to Israel this weekend. His trip to Saudi Arabia
had not been announced previously.
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"We will ... be looking forward, if the Israelis are interested and
willing, they haven't said so yet, to discuss with them how we might
further deepen and strengthen our security and intelligence
cooperation," Rice said.
Rice gave a strong indication that some of Iran's stockpile of
enriched uranium would be shipped to Russia as a result of the
historic deal and said the United States would not be worried about
that.
"It can be shipped out to a third country, like Russia. That’s
probably the most likely means ... Russia has its own fissile
material, it’s handled it appropriately, we’re not concerned about
that," Rice said.
Rice expressed confidence that Iran would fulfill its requirements
under the deal based on its record of implementing an interim
agreement.
But it will take time, she said. If Iran complies and sanctions were
lifted in "many months," new oil flows from Iran would not hit the
market all at once but were likely to lower global oil prices at
least for a while, she said.
"Given what other supply may be on the market at that time, it could
have the effect of at least for a period of time reducing oil
prices," she said.
"Obviously if oil prices come down, it will affect the revenue
streams of the oil-producing countries."
Asked about the U.S. ban on exports of domestic oil, Rice said that
issue was unrelated to sanctions being lifted on Iran. Washington
has banned most crude exports since the Arab oil embargo of the
early 1970s sparked fears of shortages. Some lawmakers, including
the head of the Senate Energy Committee, are pushing to lift the
restrictions.
(additional reporting by Roberta Rampton, Lisa Lambert, and Megan
Cassella; Editing by Stuart Grudgings)
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