Trump sets terms for civil nuclear cooperation with Riyadh

U.S. President Donald Trump said a proposed civilian nuclear cooperation agreement between Washington and Saudi Arabia would only be approved if the kingdom joins the Abraham Accords.

Writing on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump outlined the conditions attached to the deal.

“The Civil Nuclear Deal (There will be no enrichment of material!) being made between the United States Department of Energy and Saudi Arabia, which pertains only to non-military use such as the ones that Iran and UAE (and others) already have, will be approved, but is totally subject to Saudi Arabia joining the very respected and successful Abraham Accords. The United States is not opposed to Civil (Non-Enriched) Nuclear Facilities,” he wrote.

Despite Trump’s stated condition, the U.S. Department of Energy said on July 22 that it had already signed a “peaceful nuclear cooperation agreement” with Saudi Arabia, alongside a “bilateral safeguards agreement”.

The accord was signed by U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, marking a significant step in bilateral energy cooperation.

While the agreement is described as focused on civilian nuclear energy, U.S. officials have indicated it could potentially allow Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium in the future, a provision that has raised concerns among some lawmakers.

Full details of the deal have not yet been disclosed.

The agreement is expected to be submitted to Congress for review, where it may face opposition from legislators wary of insufficient safeguards to prevent nuclear proliferation, particularly regarding uranium enrichment capabilities.

By Tamilla Hasanova