WASHINGTON (Dispatches) -- A long-awaited nuclear agreement between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia has been thrown into uncertainty after President Donald Trump introduced a new condition requiring Riyadh to normalize relations with Israel before the deal can proceed.
The agreement was formally signed on Wednesday at the U.S. Department of Energy headquarters in Washington, marking the latest step in nearly two decades of negotiations over Saudi Arabia’s plans to develop a nuclear program. Energy Secretary Chris Wright signed the deal on behalf of the United States, while Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman joined remotely from Riyadh.
However, the announcement was quickly overshadowed by political disputes inside the Trump administration. On Thursday, Trump said on social media that Saudi Arabia’s participation in the Abraham Accords — an initiative from his first term that saw several Arab nations establish ties with Israel — was a requirement for the nuclear agreement to move forward.
The president also rejected suggestions that the deal would allow Saudi Arabia to develop unrestricted uranium enrichment capabilities.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Trump was angered that the deal was announced without his direct involvement in the rollout. Some White House officials believed the agreement had not been fully finalized because required notifications to Congress had not yet been sent.
The sudden change in conditions reportedly surprised some U.S. nuclear negotiators, who had not expected normalization with Israel to become an immediate requirement. The issue also gained attention after criticism from conservative media outlets, including Fox News and the Wall Street Journal, which questioned why Saudi Arabia was receiving nuclear cooperation without first establishing relations with Israel.
Under the proposed nuclear agreement, American firms would be authorized to provide technological support and know-how for Saudi Arabia’s civilian nuclear infrastructure — a privilege that the U.S. has cited as a threat when it comes to Iran, using it as a basis for its terrorist war on Tehran.
The program is intended to help the kingdom diversify its energy sources, reduce domestic oil consumption and support growing electricity demand.
For years, however, the West has criticized Iran for pursuing the very same goal, arguing that the country’s abundant oil and gas reserves make a civilian nuclear program unnecessary.
Reports indicate the agreement could potentially allow uranium enrichment in Saudi Arabia under strict conditions, although concerns remain among nuclear nonproliferation experts. Critics have raised questions about safeguards and Saudi Arabia’s refusal to adopt the International Atomic Energy Agency’s expanded inspection framework known as the Additional Protocol.