US President Donald Trump said that the agreement to develop nuclear energy for civilian purposes between the US and Saudi Arabia will not involve enrichment of nuclear material and that its conclusion is conditional on Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords – the agreements brokered by Washington during Trump's first term, aimed at normalizing diplomatic and economic relations with Israel, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
The agreement between the United States and Saudi Arabia, which allows the kingdom to build nuclear reactors with American technology, has raised concerns in Israel that an arms race could begin in the Middle East.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and his Saudi counterpart Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud signed the agreement, along with a bilateral safeguards agreement, a press release from the Energy Department in Washington said.
The agreement “is consistent with the nuclear non-proliferation treaties enshrined in the US Nuclear Energy Act, which are among the strictest in the world. Saudi Arabia has long said that if it does not partner with the United States, it could cooperate with China or Russia, which apply different nonproliferation standards, the text added.
The Energy Department said the agreement will be presented to Congress. Members of the legislature have the right to vote on a joint resolution opposing the document. If such a vote does not take place or does take place but does not receive sufficient support, the agreement will automatically enter into force after a 90-day period.
US President Donald Trump said he would hold Iran responsible for any attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels, who announced days ago that they were imposing a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia, Reuters reported.
In a message on Truth Social, Trump pointed out that after Washington's military intervention against them last year, the Houthis had begun to act more responsibly.
„Unfortunately, now they (the Houthis - ed.) are starting again, having fired on two Saudi ships last night. Let this post serve as a warning that if they do it again, the US will hold Iran responsible, as the Houthis are creatures and/or proxies of Iran. "Both Iran and the Houthis themselves will suffer serious military punishment," he wrote.
Saudi Arabia's joining the Abraham Accords "will be a historic leap towards peace in the Middle East," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office wrote on the social network X today, quoted by Reuters.
Netanyahu did not mention the civilian nuclear energy agreement between the United States and Saudi Arabia, which was announced yesterday.
US President Donald Trump said that Saudi Arabia's joining the Abraham Accords was a condition for concluding the deal.