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U.S. signs civilian nuclear cooperation deal with Saudi Arabia

newsJul 22, 2026452,266

The Trump administration signed a civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia that allows American companies to run commercial nuclear power plants on Saudi soil. Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman signed the deal and an accompanying safeguards agreement, and Congress has 90 days to review it. The agreement gives U.S. firms priority access to Saudi reactors and fuel, is expected to last decades, and the Energy Department says it could be worth billions. A U.S. memo says the pact does not include the “gold standard” barring Saudi enrichment or reprocessing nor require expanded International Atomic Energy Agency oversight, leaving a legal pathway for Saudi involvement in the nuclear fuel cycle while not obligating the U.S. to transfer fuel-cycle technologies. Rep. Brad Sherman urged Congress to demand gold-standard safeguards, and Harvard proliferation expert Matthew Bunn warned the deal could make negotiating intrusive inspections with Iran more difficult. Next step is congressional review; experts and some lawmakers say the pact raises proliferation risks and could complicate U.S. diplomacy with Iran.

Mueller, She Wrote
@muellershewrote.com

THREAD: Join me on a trip down memory lane given the news that Trump has inked a nuclear deal with the Saudis (in the middle of a war he started to end nuclear proliferation in the Middle East.) Who remembers The Middle East Marshall Plan from Trump 1.0? 1/ www.wsj.com/world/middle...

12314h ago
The Washington Post
@washingtonpost.com

Breaking news: The Trump administration signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia that gives the country a pathway to enrich nuclear fuel and commits it to using U.S. firms to supply its reactors. Congress has 90 days to act on the deal.

294h ago
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