US and Iranian officials report progress on nuclear deal

"We made progress," U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday of the nuclear negotiations with Iran, while Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the sides found "a better understanding" at the negotiating table. He was optimistic about a compromise in further rounds of the talks, after the American side was reported to have consented to allow Iran to eventually expand the permitted 6,500 centrifuges for uranium enrichment to 10,000. After the deal expired, therefore, Iran could theoretically ramp up enrichment to whatever level it wanted. Israeli is strongly critical of the deal taking shape between the US and Iran. Read DEBKAfile’s analysis of Feb. 22