The Wall Street Journal, citing White House sources, reported Tuesday that the Trump administration has approved a deal to grant Saudi Arabia a civilian nuclear program.
Under the agreement, Saudi Arabia would receive nuclear power reactors and potentially a facility for enriching uranium locally. The U.S. would in exchange get contracts for American companies to construct those facilities. The Journal reported, “Westinghouse Electric and its AP1000 reactor would be among the biggest beneficiaries.”
Saudi Arabia reportedly rejected monitoring and inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency’s “Additional Protocol.”
Reactions to the move varied. The Atlantic Council’s director of its Nuclear Energy Policy Initiative presented the move as “a win for the United States over Russia and China,” while Yoel Guzansky, a former member of Israel’s National Security Council and adviser to several prime ministers, told Newsweek that Saudi Arabia has “an aspiration for a nuclear military program. Now, you give them the keys for the car and the driver’s license.”
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