News Desk The Cradle
Washington is seeking congressional approval for a nuclear energy pact with Saudi Arabia that does not include safeguards aimed at preventing the development of an atomic bomb, two sources told Reuters on 22 July.
US President Donald Trump’s government is planning to submit “to Congress a pact with Saudi Arabia to share nuclear power technology that does not include safeguards the US has long said would stop materials being used in nuclear weapons programs,” the sources said.
“The administration would submit to Congress within days a document known as a 123 Agreement that will be signed by US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi energy minister Abdulaziz bin Salman,” they added.
The US and Saudi Arabia reached a preliminary nuclear deal in 2025, aimed at serving as a “pathway” to a civil nuclear program for the kingdom.
The deal is based on Section 123 of the US Atomic Energy Act of 1954. It stipulates that Washington and US firms work with entities in Saudi Arabia to develop a multibillion-dollar civil nuclear program.
“The agreement does not include the ‘Gold Standard’ that would block the kingdom from enriching uranium and reprocessing spent nuclear fuel, both of which are potential pathways to nuclear weapons,” the sources added.
The White House and US Energy Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
A source told CNN on 22 July that “the deal would last 30 years and could be announced as soon as Wednesday.”
CNN had reported the news first over the weekend, citing sources who discussed the matter on 18 July.
The outlet cited documents and sources as saying that Trump has agreed to allow Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium without the need for international safeguards arrangements, like the ones that have been imposed on Iran for years.
That report said that the draft nuclear deal from last year is still awaiting Trump’s signature despite the conclusion of US–Saudi nuclear negotiations in October last year.
“The ongoing war with Iran … has played a role in delaying Trump’s signature … the Trump administration is delaying sign-off because it could face a bipartisan disapproval resolution blocking the deals from going into effect,” the sources stated.
CNN cited experts as saying that the deal “could potentially provide Saudi Arabia with a path to nuclear weapons.”
The US president and Israel have largely justified the current illegal war on Iran as an effort to prevent the Islamic Republic from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
Iran is a member of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and operates under a religious fatwa outlawing the development of atomic bombs. US intelligence reports have also repeatedly concluded that Tehran is not seeking to weaponize its nuclear program.
Nonetheless, Tehran continues to refuse demands that it hand over its enriched uranium, which was raised to higher purity levels as a response to Trump’s 2018 withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) – an Obama-era US-Iran deal reached in 2015.
Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have been saying for decades that Tehran was close to developing a nuclear weapon.
Several years ago, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) stated that if Iran acquires a nuclear bomb, “we will have to get one” as well.
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