Trump approves nuclear deal allowing Saudi uranium enrichment despite proliferation concerns: Report

US President Donald Trump has reportedly approved a long-term nuclear agreement with Saudi Arabia that could allow the Arab kingdom to enrich uranium for a civilian nuclear program, a move that exposes Washington’s double standards on nuclear issues amid its military aggression against Iran.

The 30-year agreement, expected to be announced soon and submitted to Congress for review, would involve US companies in developing Saudi Arabia’s civilian nuclear program, the Associated Press reported on Wednesday, citing two unnamed informed sources.

The agreement could also pave the way for constructing a uranium enrichment facility following a joint US-Saudi feasibility study, the report added.

However, the deal reportedly omits the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s Additional Protocol, which provides for more intrusive monitoring and inspections, raising concerns among some US lawmakers over nuclear proliferation.

The reported decision comes as the United States and Israel continue their war of aggression against Iran under the pretext of preventing Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons, despite Iran's longstanding insistence that its uranium enrichment program is entirely peaceful.

While Washington has long opposed Iran's nuclear activities, nonproliferation experts warn that allowing Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium could eventually enable a military nuclear program, with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman having previously indicated the kingdom would seek nuclear weapons if Iran were ever to obtain one.

Trump and former president Joe Biden both pursued nuclear cooperation with Riyadh, while US Energy Secretary Chris Wright also discussed expanding Saudi Arabia's nuclear industry during his visit to the kingdom last year.

Neither the White House nor Saudi officials have yet commented on the reported agreement.

The report also noted that Saudi Arabia, an IAEA member, has strengthened defense ties with nuclear-armed Pakistan, whose defense minister said the country's nuclear program “will be made available” to Saudi Arabia if necessary.

Although uranium enrichment alone does not produce a nuclear weapon, experts say it significantly shortens the path toward weaponization by providing access to fissile material.

Exclusive: New IAEA draft resolution recycles Iran 'non-compliance' myth while ignoring two imposed wars

The IAEA

The report comes as the US has been seeking to deprive Iran of the peaceful applications of nuclear energy although Tehran is among the first nations to have signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and its nuclear activities are under surveillance of the IAEA.  

Iran has also maintained that its nuclear program is exclusively for peaceful purposes and has repeatedly said it neither seeks nor intends to develop nuclear weapons.

For years, Tehran has cooperated with the IAEA, allowing inspections of its nuclear facilities under its safeguards obligations. Nevertheless, Israel and the US launched strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in June last year, and again, the US joined Israel in another 40-day unprovoked war of aggression beginning on February 28, claiming the attacks were aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

The two waves of aggression came despite the absence of any evidence that Iran was pursuing a nuclear weapons program, underscoring what Tehran describes as Washington's and Tel Aviv's policy of targeting Iran's peaceful nuclear activities while applying a different standard to their regional allies.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.ir