US President Donald Trump has signed approval for American companies to build civilian nuclear reactors in Saudi Arabia, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. The move aims to counter Chinese influence in the region. Israel had conditioned such a program on a peace agreement, a condition now dropped, creating a strategic setback for Jerusalem.
The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that President Donald Trump has signed approval for American companies to build civilian nuclear reactors in Saudi Arabia. This formal signing is the latest step in a deal first reported earlier today, aimed at countering Chinese influence in the region.
The Zioneer's coverage began at 05:15 Jerusalem with a Channel 12 report on a 30-year, tens-of-billions agreement. Within the same minute, The Zioneer published updates confirming US approval of a civilian nuclear program, Trump's confirmation of the deal including uranium enrichment on Saudi soil, and details that US companies would exclusively build an enrichment facility if needed, with Congress requiring a two-thirds vote to block it. At 05:16, the Wall Street Journal reported the deal with potential for enrichment. At 05:32, US officials described a secret 'black box' safeguard to prevent Saudi diversion to military use. At 05:56, the New York Times reported that Trump separated the nuclear deal from the requirement that Saudi Arabia normalize relations with Israel, a condition the Biden administration had pursued. At 06:38, The Zioneer reported that US Energy Secretary Chris Wright is expected to sign the deal tomorrow.
The deal is part of a broader Trump administration push to expand US nuclear energy exports, as The Zioneer reported on June 24 regarding plans for ten commercial reactors by 2030. The Zioneer also reported at 05:32 on the 'black box' mechanism intended to prevent a Saudi nuclear weapons program.
The dropped normalization condition creates a strategic setback for Israel, which had conditioned such a program on a peace agreement. It remains unclear whether the final agreement will include binding safeguards beyond the reported 'black box' arrangement, and whether Congress will attempt to block the deal despite the two-thirds vote requirement making rejection nearly impossible.
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