“They have a right to have a vote” at the United Nations, Mr. Kerry added, referring to his negotiating partners, who include the four other permanent members of the Security Council, plus Germany. “But we prevailed on them to delay the implementation of that vote out of respect for our Congress, so we wouldn’t be jamming them.”

The congressional review, which formally begins on Monday, will focus on an array of contentious issues, including the duration of the agreement, the strength of inspection provisions and the procedures for reimposing sanctions if the Iranians violate the agreement. Critics have also complained that the lifting of sanctions and the eventual end of an arms embargo will empower Iran to act against American interests around the world.

In response, the White House has stepped up its campaign to argue that a congressional rebuff would bring about the very outcome lawmakers want to avoid: the collapse of sanctions and an Iran on the threshold of having a nuclear weapon.

“If Congress says ‘no’ to this deal, then there will be no restraints on Iran,” Mr. Kerry told “Face the Nation” on Sunday. “There will be no sanctions left. Our friends in this effort will desert us.”

So far that argument has failed to impress Republicans, who have long pressed for tough sanctions and have viewed the idea of the Security Council voting first as an affront to the United States’ role as the ultimate check on Iran.

But some Democrats have also voiced concern that the administration may be trying to box them in by agreeing to swiftly proceed with a Council vote that will reduce the international pressure on Tehran.

Senator Bob Corker, Republican of Tennessee, who chairs the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, and Senator Benjamin L. Cardin of Maryland, the panel’s ranking Democrat, sent a joint letter to Mr. Obama last week urging him to postpone the Council vote until after Congress has voted on the accord.