(AFP) – US President Donald Trump said Thursday that a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia depends on the kingdom recognizing Israel, throwing the agreement into turmoil just the day after it was signed. The apparently new condition comes despite Riyadh having long resisted joining the so-called Abraham Accords with Israel, insisting on a pathway to a Palestinian state. It was not mentioned in the civilian nuclear deal announced on Wednesday, which had appeared to be a major win for the Saudis even as Trump wages war on Iran over its nuclear program.
But Trump stunned the Saudis with his post on his Truth Social network, saying the deal “will be approved, but is totally subject to Saudi Arabia joining the very respected and successful Abraham Accords.” The White House insisted that Trump had previously told Saudi Arabia the deal was contingent on recognizing Israel. “The president is always the final dealmaker. He has said if they don’t join the Abraham Accords, the deal is off,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters. “The president has spoken directly with the Saudis about this in numerous conversations in the past, and the administration will continue to engage in those conversations.”
– ‘Historic leap’ – Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said recognition by Saudi Arabia, a regional power and home to Islam’s holiest sites, would mark a “historic leap” forward for peace in the Middle East. Leavitt said she did not know of any calls between Trump and Netanyahu following the announcement of the Saudi agreement. There was no immediate reaction from Riyadh. Should it go through, the deal to establish a civilian nuclear program in Saudi Arabia would generate billions of dollars for American companies. But with Trump’s latest announcement, it was unclear whether it would ever see the light of day.
If Washington “tries to force normalization on Riyadh, it’s not likely to work out very well,” said H.A. Hellyer, senior associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), a leading UK defense and security think tank. “Would Saudi decide to do a complete 180 on what it has declared for the past three years, or 30 years? Quite dubious,” he told AFP. Critics have also insisted that the deal could precipitate a nuclear race in a region already battered by war. One provision would potentially see US companies build a uranium enrichment facility in Saudi Arabia, The Wall Street Journal reported. The US Energy Department made no mention of such a provision and did not offer comment when asked about it by AFP.
And Trump seemingly quashed it by saying on Truth Social that there would be “no enrichment of material!” The deal will be submitted to Congress for review. US lawmakers from both parties and Israeli officials have previously voiced opposition to such a project over fears Saudi Arabia could eventually convert it to develop nuclear weapons. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that any civil nuclear agreement signed by Washington with another country “is going to be one that will have safeguards in place to ensure that it can’t be turned into a weapons program.”
– Proliferation concerns – Riyadh, like Tehran, has long been adamant about its right to pursue a civilian nuclear program. Last year, it signed a mutual defense pact with nuclear-armed Pakistan. Policymakers have long feared that if Iran produced a nuclear weapon, the move would set off an arms race across the Gulf. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright dismissed concerns, insisting the deal was in Washington’s economic and strategic interest and involved the “highest standards of nuclear safety and nonproliferation.” The United States has agreements governing nuclear cooperation with more than 50 countries.
The Saudi deal, meanwhile, comes as Riyadh looks set to be dragged further into the Middle East war, with Yemen’s Houthi rebels starting to attack ships in the Red Sea to enforce what they say is a blockade on Saudi Arabia. Trump vowed to punish both Iran and the Houthis if the attacks continue.
burs-dk/sla – Danny KEMP
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