A long-awaited civilian nuclear cooperation agreement between the United States and Saudi Arabia was thrown into uncertainty less than 24 hours after it was signed, after President Donald Trump imposed a new condition requiring Riyadh to join the Abraham Accords.
The agreement was formally signed on Wednesday at the US Department of Energy headquarters in Washington after years of negotiations. Energy Secretary Chris Wright participated in the ceremony alongside Saudi officials, with the event marking what had been presented as a significant milestone in bilateral relations.
Deal Signed After Years of Negotiations
Saudi Arabia had secured many of its key objectives in the agreement, including provisions that would eventually allow uranium enrichment on Saudi soil under specific conditions. The deal also did not require Riyadh to adopt the International Atomic Energy Agency's Additional Protocol, a more stringent inspection framework.
However, on Thursday morning Trump announced on social media that the agreement would only proceed if Saudi Arabia normalised diplomatic relations with Israel by joining the Abraham Accords. He also rejected suggestions that the deal would permit uranium enrichment.
Internal Dispute Over Rollout
According to sources familiar with the matter, Trump was already unhappy that the agreement had been unveiled without his direct involvement. The sources said the president had not been informed by Wright that the signing ceremony would take place when it did.
Confusion spread inside the administration as White House officials and the Energy Department offered differing accounts of how the announcement had been handled. Some White House officials argued they had asked the Energy Department to delay the rollout, while others maintained the agreement had not yet been finalised because required notifications to Congress had not been sent.
White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said the administration had always viewed Saudi participation in the Abraham Accords as a requirement for the nuclear agreement.
The Energy Department rejected suggestions of poor coordination, calling reports of internal disagreement "fake news" and insisting negotiations and the announcement had been closely coordinated with both the White House and the State Department.
Questions about the deal dominated Thursday's White House press briefing, where Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt described Trump as the administration's "final dealmaker" and defended the president's decision.
Criticism from Experts and Conservatives
The agreement also drew criticism from nuclear non-proliferation experts, who expressed concern over provisions allowing uranium enrichment and the absence of stronger international inspection safeguards.
Supporters argued the agreement would strengthen US influence over Saudi Arabia's civilian nuclear programme while preventing Riyadh from turning to China or Russia for nuclear cooperation.
Conservative media outlets also questioned the agreement. The Wall Street Journal's editorial board criticised the absence of any requirement for Saudi Arabia to normalise relations with Israel before receiving nuclear cooperation. Fox News hosts similarly questioned why the arrangement appeared to differ from proposals considered during Joe Biden's presidency.
Sources told CNN that this criticism influenced Trump's decision to halt the agreement in its existing form.
Regional Diplomacy Remains Central
The nuclear agreement is the latest chapter in nearly two decades of US-Saudi nuclear negotiations. A tentative understanding had been reached in late 2025, but concerns over regional tensions and possible congressional opposition delayed progress.
Following Trump's intervention, some observers speculated that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had urged the president to tie the agreement to Saudi recognition of Israel. Two Israeli sources said Netanyahu hoped such a condition would be included.
The White House said Trump had not spoken with Netanyahu before announcing the new requirement and insisted the president was simply restating a long-standing policy position.
Saudi Arabia has consistently maintained that it cannot establish diplomatic relations with Israel without a credible pathway towards Palestinian statehood, making the newly imposed condition a significant obstacle to the agreement's future.
Join the discussion? 
25 July 2026
-
3
-
2
Recommended Comments
Create an account or sign in to comment