Trump ties Saudi nuclear pact to Israel relations
Trump said Saudi Arabia will not enrich uranium under a U.S. nuclear agreement and that the deal depends on Riyadh joining the Abraham Accords.
By Theo Nakamura · Staff Writer
· 2 min read
President Donald Trump said Thursday that Saudi Arabia’s new nuclear power agreement with the U.S. will not allow Riyadh to enrich uranium. For investors watching geopolitical risk around energy and the Middle East, the key point is that Trump is attaching the nuclear pact to Saudi Arabia establishing formal diplomatic relations with Israel.
Trump made the comments in a Truth Social post, saying the agreement signed this week is dependent on Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords. He also wrote that there would be “no enrichment of material,” according to the post.
Uranium enrichment is the process of increasing the share of a uranium isotope used in nuclear fuel. The issue is sensitive because enrichment capability can shape how much control a country has over the nuclear fuel cycle.
The Abraham Accords are the diplomatic framework Trump referenced for normalizing relations with Israel. In Trump’s telling, Saudi participation in that framework is a condition of the nuclear agreement.
What Trump said is in the deal
Trump’s statement puts two limits around the agreement as he described it: Saudi Arabia would not enrich uranium, and the deal would be conditional on Riyadh joining the Abraham Accords.
CNBC reported that the nuclear agreement was signed with the U.S. this week. Trump called the Abraham Accords “respected and successful” in his Truth Social post.
The White House position described by Trump links civilian nuclear cooperation with a broader diplomatic goal. Civilian nuclear agreements can cover cooperation on nuclear power, but the enrichment question is often central because it determines whether a partner country can produce its own nuclear fuel rather than relying on outside suppliers.
Trump’s comments also make clear that the agreement, as he characterized it, is not a stand-alone energy arrangement. It is tied to Saudi Arabia’s relationship with Israel, a major regional issue that carries implications for U.S. foreign policy and investor attention on the region.
What is still unclear
Trump’s post did not provide further details on the agreement’s technical terms, timing, enforcement measures or the process Saudi Arabia would need to follow to join the Abraham Accords. CNBC described the situation as developing.
No statement from Saudi Arabia was included in CNBC’s report. The reported facts at this stage are Trump’s description of the deal, the no-enrichment condition and his assertion that the agreement depends on Saudi Arabia establishing diplomatic relations with Israel through the Abraham Accords.
This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.
