Nuclear experts and former officials in Israel – the US’s top ally in the Middle East – have voiced concern that the plan could ultimately lead to Saudi Arabia being able to develop a nuclear weapon – though other experts say that path would likely take decades and spark pushback from the international community.
Israeli Economy Minister Nir Barkat said his country “can manage it” if Saudi Arabia had nuclear power for peaceful means.
Israel itself is widely believed to have nuclear weapons, but it neither confirms nor denies that this is the case.
Rosemary Kelanic, the director of the Middle East programme at the US-based Defense Priorities think tank, said it would be “quite shocking” if the US were to allow Saudi Arabia uranium enrichment facilities.
“The US has never done that before. We have never helped another country enrich on their own soil,” she said, adding that this was because “if you can produce your own nuclear fuel, you become a much bigger risk” for building nuclear weapons.
The agreement will now be sent to the US Congress for review.
Some lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle are expected to oppose the deal, though Trump’s Republican Party controls both the upper and lower chambers and opponents of the deal do not appear to have the votes needed to block it.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio rebuffed concerns that it could advance Saudi Arabia’s ability to develop nuclear arms.
“The US is not going to reach any agreement with any country in the world that leads to the risk of proliferation,” Rubio told reporters.
Several Democrats opposed to the deal pointed out that, during his time as a senator, Rubio had endorsed a law – the “No Nuclear Weapons for Saudi Arabia Act” – which required Congressional approval of any nuclear deal.
Massachusetts Democratic Senator Edward Markey condemned Rubio and Trump as “allowing Saudi Arabia, a belligerent and authoritarian nation, to develop nuclear weapons technologies while starting a war with Iran under the guise of preventing an Iranian nuclear bomb”, adding that their “hypocrisy is matched only by their recklessness”.
