U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, speaking at the 2014 AIPAC Policy Conference on March 3, 2014. Photo: Algemeiner.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday said the administration of U.S. President Obama  is committed, “unequivocally,” to stop Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon.

Speaking as the afternoon keynote at the 2014 AIPAC Policy Conference, Kerry said he had 10 words for the audience: “We will not permit Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon, period.”

After a standing ovation, Kerry quipped, “I added an eleventh word just for punctuation,” to further applause from AIPAC delegates.

Kerry stressed that “no deal is better than a bad deal,” but Obama’s policy is to “seize the diplomatic moment” and if it “were to elude us, it is not because we were the ones that closed the window.”

After an agreement is reached with Iran, the  approach will be to “verify and verify” that Iran is sticking to its commitments, he said.

“If Iran fails this test, America will not fail Israel, that I promise,” Kerry said.

As for the lifting of economic sanctions on Iran, Kerry said, “Iran is not open for business, until Iran is closed for nuclear bombs.”