Trump ties Saudi nuclear deal to Abraham Accords

President Donald Trump announced on Friday that a civil nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia would only proceed if the Kingdom agrees to normalize relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords. This condition was not included in the original agreement between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quickly endorsed the idea, stating that Saudi Arabia's participation in the Abraham Accords would be a significant advancement for Middle East peace. The original deal framework, announced earlier in the week, was intended to establish American safeguards for Saudi Arabia's civil nuclear program.

However, concerns have been raised by some nonproliferation advocates and officials who noted that the initial agreement might allow Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium domestically in the future, bypassing the stringent "gold standard" no-enrichment pledge and broad International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspections. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that the condition regarding the Abraham Accords had been added to the agreement from the President's perspective and that the administration would continue discussions with Saudi counterparts.

The agreement, which involves U.S. industry assisting in the development of Saudi nuclear infrastructure, is valued at tens of billions of dollars and spans 30 years. Trump himself disputed claims that the deal would permit uranium enrichment, asserting on social media that there would be "no enrichment of material" and that the deal was "totally subject to Saudi Arabia joining the very respected and successful Abraham Accords."