President Trump okays civilian nuclear pact with Saudi Arabia, moving Riyadh closer to uranium enrichment.By World Israel News StaffPresident Donald Trump has approved a 30-year civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia that could eventually permit uranium enrichment inside the kingdom, according to multiple reports citing US officials and others familiar with the decision.The agreement, which had not yet been formally announced, is expected to be submitted to Congress for review within days. It would allow the US government and American companies to participate in the development of Saudi Arabia’s planned civilian nuclear industry, potentially placing US firms at the center of a project worth tens of billions of dollars.Unlike the broader diplomatic package pursued under former president Joe Biden, the agreement does not require Saudi Arabia to establish diplomatic relations with Israel.The Wall Street Journal first reported that Trump had formally approved the pact. The Associated Press and Reuters subsequently confirmed the development through separate sources. The White House, the US Department of Energy and the Saudi government did not immediately comment on the reports.The agreement is known as a Section 123 agreement, after the provision of the US Atomic Energy Act that regulates civilian nuclear cooperation with foreign countries. Without such an agreement, American companies generally cannot transfer sensitive nuclear technology, equipment or material to another country.Under the reported terms, the United States and Saudi Arabia could conduct a joint study on whether an enrichment facility should be constructed inside the kingdom. The agreement would create a legal route for cooperation involving the nuclear fuel cycle, but would not automatically require Washington to transfer enrichment technology.The arrangement is intended to ensure that American companies, rather than Chinese or Russian competitors, receive a leading role in building Saudi Arabia’s nuclear infrastructure. US officials have also argued that direct American involvement would give Washington greater oversight of the program and reduce the risk that nuclear technology could be diverted for military purposes.Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman announced in November 2025 that negotiations on a civil nuclear framework had been completed.Wright said at the time that the two countries intended to “bring American nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia and keep a firm commitment to nonproliferation.”The reported final agreement, however, is expected to omit two restrictions sought by many arms-control advocates and lawmakers.It reportedly does not require Saudi Arabia to accept the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Additional Protocol, which gives inspectors wider access to nuclear-related information and locations and strengthens the agency’s ability to detect undeclared activities.The pact also does not include the so-called “gold standard” adopted by the United Arab Emirates in its nuclear agreement with Washington. Under that standard, the UAE permanently renounced domestic uranium enrichment and the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel.Saudi Arabia has refused to make the same commitment, maintaining that it should be permitted to enrich uranium as part of a peaceful domestic nuclear program.Enrichment can be used to produce fuel for civilian reactors, but the same basic technology can also be used to produce highly enriched uranium suitable for a nuclear weapon. A country possessing enrichment facilities would still need to overcome additional technological obstacles before constructing a bomb, but it would control one of the most sensitive stages of the weapons-development process.Concerns about the Saudi program have been heightened by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s previous statements linking the kingdom’s nuclear policy to Iran.“Without a doubt if Iran developed a nuclear bomb, we will follow suit as soon as possible,” the crown prince said in a 2018 interview.The agreement comes amid the US-Israeli war against Iran, which was launched in part to destroy Tehran’s ability to produce a nuclear weapon. Iran has consistently maintained that its enrichment activities are intended for peaceful purposes.Critics fear that allowing Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium could encourage other Middle Eastern governments to demand equivalent rights in future agreements with Washington.“Where Saudi Arabia goes, the UAE, Turkey and Egypt will go,” Henry Sokolski, executive director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center, warned.Supporters of the agreement argue that Saudi Arabia is determined to pursue nuclear power and could turn to China, Russia or another supplier if Washington refuses to cooperate. They say a US-led project would provide greater transparency, preserve American influence in Riyadh and create major commercial opportunities for the American nuclear industry.The deal also represents a significant departure from the Biden administration’s approach. Biden officials had sought to include nuclear assistance in a wider agreement involving a US security commitment to Saudi Arabia and Saudi normalization with Israel.Those negotiations stalled after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack and the ensuing Gaza war. Riyadh has insisted that normalization with Israel must be accompanied by a credible path toward the creation of a Palestinian state.The Trump administration removed normalization with Israel as a condition for progress in the nuclear negotiations in 2025, allowing the civil nuclear discussions to move forward separately.Once formally submitted, the agreement is expected to undergo approximately 90 days of congressional review. Congress could attempt to block it through a joint resolution, although lawmakers would likely need a two-thirds majority to override a presidential veto.The pact is expected to receive substantial Republican support but could encounter opposition from Democrats and some Republicans who have demanded stronger restrictions on enrichment and more extensive international inspections.The post Trump approves Saudi nuke deal – without Israel peace agreement appeared first on World Israel News.