US President Donald Trump has said that he will approve the civil nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia on the condition of joining the Abraham Accords. He clarified that this agreement will be for non-military use and will not include uranium enrichment.
US President Donald Trump has made a bilateral civilian nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia conditional on Riyadh formally joining the Abraham Accords. In a social media post on Truth Social on Thursday, Trump clarified that the framework of the proposed cooperation would be limited solely to non-military nuclear applications, with domestic uranium enrichment explicitly excluded under the arrangement. “The civilian nuclear deal … will be approved, but is strictly subject to Saudi Arabia’s rejoining the much respected and successful Abraham Accords,” Trump wrote. He further stated, “The United States is not opposed to civilian (non-enhanced) nuclear facilities.”
The president’s intervention came just 24 hours after US and Saudi officials announced the landmark energy deal. Signed by US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, the bilateral agreement has been submitted for legislative review in the US Congress.
Saudi stance on Abraham Accords
By linking these two issues, Trump has added to the civilian energy partnership a long-standing contention in Middle East diplomacy. Riyadh has repeatedly reaffirmed that formal diplomatic recognition of Israel is contingent on a clear and credible roadmap toward an independent Palestinian state. Despite Washington’s persistent diplomatic efforts to expand the scope of the “Abraham Accords”, Saudi officials have kept their stance on the issue of Palestinian statehood unchanged.
Nuclear deal terms and concerns
Negotiations on a bilateral civil nuclear framework between Washington and Riyadh have spanned successive US administrations, although previous efforts have deadlocked over nonproliferation terms. Unlike previous versions evaluated under former US President Joe Biden, the current draft does not oblige Saudi Arabia to sign the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Additional Protocol, which grants inspectors short-notice access to undeclared sites. The White House says the agreement strictly adheres to the US Atomic Energy Act and includes strong nonproliferation controls. Saudi officials have similarly said the alliance will accelerate national energy diversification and maintain international security standards.
The bilateral treaty, structured as a “123 Agreement”, aims to enable the construction of AP1000 nuclear reactors using American technology throughout the state. The agreement is now undergoing a 90-session-day review period in the US Congress and will automatically enter into force unless blocked by legislative action. However, the arrangement has been criticized by several Democratic lawmakers, who warn that giving Riyadh advanced nuclear technology risks wider regional proliferation and an arms race in West Asia.
What is the ‘Abraham Accords’?
The “Abraham Accords” are a series of US-brokered diplomatic agreements initiated in 2020 that established formal political, economic, and security relations between Israel and several Arab countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. (ANI)
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