US President Donald Trump has approved a landmark 30-year agreement on civilian nuclear cooperation with Saudi Arabia, paving the way for closer cooperation between the two countries on nuclear energy.
The agreement is expected to give US companies a central role in helping Saudi Arabia develop its civilian nuclear programme, including the construction of nuclear power plants to meet the kingdom’s growing energy needs.
Saudi Arabia currently has no nuclear power reactors but has been planning to build its first commercial nuclear plant. Riyadh says nuclear energy will help diversify its energy mix and meet rising domestic electricity demand.
The agreement is expected to be submitted to Congress for review and could be worth tens of billions of dollars for the US nuclear industry.
Washington is expected to retain significant oversight of any nuclear cooperation. Any Saudi nuclear programme would remain subject to international safeguards and US monitoring requirements, while the agreement is expected to include provisions governing the handling of nuclear materials and technology.
One of the key issues in negotiations has been uranium enrichment. Saudi Arabia has sought the right to develop parts of the nuclear fuel cycle, while Washington has sought assurances that any enrichment would remain exclusively for civilian purposes and under appropriate safeguards.
The deal comes as the United States and Saudi Arabia deepen their strategic partnership. Riyadh has long sought to develop nuclear energy, while the Trump administration has promoted US nuclear technology as part of a broader expansion of economic and strategic ties.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has previously said Saudi Arabia would seek nuclear weapons if Iran obtained them.
The White House and the Saudi government had not formally announced the agreement at the time of publication, but two people familiar with the matter confirmed Trump’s approval to the Associated Press. Reuters separately reported that the administration planned to submit the agreement to Congress.
