Trump administration signs nuclear agreement with Saudi Arabia | What to know

(ASSOCIATED PRESS) — President Donald Trump on Thursday appeared to add a condition to the newly signed agreement with Saudi Arabia for a civilian nuclear program, saying the deal would require the kingdom to normalize its relations with Israel through the Abraham Accords. When the deal was announced Wednesday, neither the U.S. Energy Department nor the Saudi government made any mention of it being contingent on the kingdom’s relations with Israel. Trump’s social media post a day later asserting that the agreement was subject to the Saudis joining the accords was unexpected and almost certain to complicate any final approval. The accords approved in 2020 expanded the number of Arab and Muslim-majority nations with diplomatic ties with Israel. Getting Saudi Arabia to join would be a monumental diplomatic achievement. The Saudis have previously made clear that normalizing relations with Israel would first require the establishment of a clear path for Palestinian statehood. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected the idea of Palestinian statehood as being untenable for his country’s security. The Republican president also said the pact does not allow for enrichment of uranium. Nonproliferation experts have raised concerns that the deal fails to include guardrails to prevent enrichment of uranium to weapons-grade levels. Trump said the agreement “will be approved, but is totally subject to Saudi Arabia joining the very respected and successful Abraham Accords.” He added that the U.S. “is not opposed to Civil (Non-Enriched) Nuclear Facilities.”