Kerry Insists: Iran’s Release of Hostages ‘Not Distinctly Linked’ to Iran Deal

RUSH TRANSCRIPT:
BLITZER: "You said accelerated by the nuclear talks, the nuclear deal. Were these prisoners, pawns part of that deal?" 
KERRY: "No. We really almost had an agreement -- and I thought we did have an agreement well before implementation day. And it got caught up in a snag on interpretation. We have to work it through. And then it simply dovetailed in and it dovetailed in fairly easily, but it was not linked distinctly." 
BLITZER: "But no one really believes it was a coincidence that on the day the implementation of the nuclear deal goes forward, finally the Americans are released from Iran." 
KERRY: "Well, it became as I say it became convenient. It was not linked. In the last weeks it became almost automatic this was going to happen in one fell swoop. But it was not linked for a year and a half. I guess it was for 15 months we had a series of meetings. I thought we had arrived at an agreement."