Trump Sends Saudi Nuclear Accord To Congress, With Israel Normalization Still Attached
It's official - a proposed agreement with Saudi Arabia on civil nuclear energy has been submitted by the White House to Congress.
The landmark nuclear accord would mean that uranium enrichment would eventually take place on Saudi territory. However, President Trump has included a major bombshell condition: he has not backed off requiring Saudi normalization with Israel.
"The president's position has not changed that the agreement will only move forward if Saudi Arabia joins the Abraham Accords," an admin official has made clear.
The Wall Street Journal reports that "The agreement, which was reached in July and would allow U.S. companies to export civilian nuclear technology to the kingdom, was sent to Congress on Monday, according to the U.S. official, who declined to be identified."
But officials admit expected fierce debate in Congress, as WSJ also notes: "It was not clear how Trump expects sending the nuclear deal to Congress, which has 90 session days to consider it, will advance his objectives."
"The 30-year nuclear deal calls for the construction of AP1000 reactors, a project worth tens of billions of dollars that would benefit Westinghouse, jointly owned by Canada-based Cameco and Brookfield Asset Management," the same report details.
The Saudis cooled on the potential for normalization with Israel in the wake of the Gaza war. Riyadh has long been demanding nothing less than full recognition of a Palestinian state before it can join the Abraham Accords.
Given at this point that this seems an impossibility from Israel's perspective, which has effectively demolished the Gaza Strip and continues squeezing the West Bank, the Saudi nuclear deal is unlikely to happen anytime soon - and could yet be many years down the line, if at all.
Meanwhile, Tehran will seize on the hypocrisy of the West allowing uranium enrichment in Saudi Arabia - and thus potential nukes - while making war on Iran and sanctioning the country for its nuclear energy program.
Any future Saudi nuclear weapon might also assure an atomic arms race in the region, and certainly the Iranians would then have greater incentive to finally build one. And it could be that they already are in secret, following the US-Israeli unprovoked attacks during Operation Epic Fury.
Why a Saudi nuclear program is not worth ending Us proliferation
— Brian McDonald B (@iamBrianBJ) August 26, 2026
Spot on article by @StrickerNonpro analysing the proliferation risks if this deal. And i would add; these proliferation risks have only increased after the Mecca agreement. https://t.co/HlG3yCUJaV
Iran sees itself as in a war for its very existence, and so would naturally respond accordingly. It also looks at nations like North Korea, who gain automatic 'respect' from Trump and others on the mere basis of possessing a nuclear arsenal.