Trump Approves Saudi Nuclear Deal with Minimal Safety Checks: WSJ

Trump approves Saudi nuclear deal with minimal safety mechanisms: WSJ report

Washington, DC, July 22

The nuclear deal has generated widespread anxiety over whether the framework possesses sufficient checks to prevent uranium processed in the kingdom from being weaponised. Observers contend that Washington's campaign to dismantle Iran's nuclear programme could be severely undermined by granting domestic enrichment technology to its regional competitor.

Although the nuclear deal would block Beijing and Moscow from capturing a massive commercial market, deep unease remains over the absent regulatory guards, according to Robert Einhorn, a former senior State Department official who counselled both Republican and Democratic administrations on non-proliferation issues.

"The agreement could help revitalise the US nuclear industry, strengthen US-Saudi ties and deny Russia and China a strategically important role in the Saudi nuclear program. But unless it contains adequate constraints, including on enrichment, it could increase nuclear proliferation risks in the Middle East and beyond," Einhorn told WSJ.

The nuclear deal is projected to yield tens of billions of USD for American firms participating in constructing Saudi Arabia's energy infrastructure, though Riyadh's primary objective centres on obtaining the enrichment capabilities enabled by the arrangement, according to WSJ.

Under the nuclear deal, as reactor initiatives move forward, Washington and Riyadh will carry out a joint two-year assessment to determine if domestic uranium enrichment inside the kingdom is commercially viable compared to importing fuel. Should the study yield a positive evaluation, American entities will construct an enrichment site within Saudi territory, WSJ reported.

Riyadh has turned down the "gold standard" commitment to permanently forfeit domestic uranium enrichment and spent fuel reprocessing, an obligation accepted by the neighbouring United Arab Emirates, according to WSJ.

Furthermore, Saudi officials have rejected the "Additional Protocol", an inspection arrangement established by the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), that mandates more stringent surveillance and verification measures.

Despite warnings that missing these guarantees could allow uranium diversion for non-civilian uses or spark a regional arms race, WSJ reported that Trump administration officials maintained that a separate bilateral pact negotiated with Riyadh would ensure effective monitoring of American-supplied atomic facilities, though critics remain sceptical of those assurances.

Foreign policy experts have also faulted the nuclear deal because diplomatic progress had previously been tied to Saudi Arabia establishing formal ties with Israel under former President Joe Biden. Analysts argue that Washington has conceded a nuclear deal to the Saudis without securing reciprocal strategic concessions, according to WSJ.

Critics further contend that bestowing uranium-enrichment capabilities upon Riyadh places Washington in a delicate position, coming precisely as its administration demands that Iran accept comprehensive, unyielding restrictions on its nuclear programme.

Mounting anxieties also stem from Riyadh's refusal to rule out non-civilian nuclear ambitions, with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman previously declaring that the kingdom would acquire a nuclear weapon if Tehran obtained one, WSJ reported.

— ANI