- President Trump upended the Saudi nuclear deal by requiring Saudi Arabia to join the Abraham Accords and denied that the agreement would allow uranium enrichment.
- Trump was angry because Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced the deal without informing him, and his frustration grew after criticism from Fox News and the Wall Street Journal editorial page.
- The Abraham Accords condition surprised the administration's own nuclear negotiators, who found it unexpected.
- Trump’s Truth Social post blindsided the Saudis, who considered the nuclear deal a major triumph.
- Conservative media coverage, including the Wall Street Journal editorial board, was influential in Trump's decision to block the agreement.
- Trump reimposed the condition in a 7:52 a.m. social media post, minutes after a Fox panel discussed the issue.
- The deal would permit uranium enrichment on Saudi soil with conditions, while limiting the IAEA’s ability to inspect covert sites, alarming nonproliferation experts.
- White House officials blamed the Energy Department for rolling out the agreement despite being asked not to; the Energy Department denied this, claiming close coordination.
Former President Donald Trump upended a newly signed Saudi nuclear deal less than 24 hours after its announcement, demanding that Saudi Arabia join the Abraham Accords as a condition for the agreement. This unexpected requirement surprised both the Saudis and U.S. nuclear negotiators, leading to confusion within the administration.123457
Trump's social media post on Thursday morning stated that the deal would not allow for uranium enrichment, a point that has raised alarms among nuclear nonproliferation experts. The deal, which would permit uranium enrichment on Saudi soil under certain conditions, also limits the ability of a UN watchdog agency to inspect suspected covert nuclear sites.1112
The Energy Department emphasized its close coordination with the White House regarding the deal's announcement, countering claims of miscommunication. However, Trump's insistence on the normalization requirement was met with skepticism from conservative media, including Fox News and the Wall Street Journal, which questioned the rationale behind the deal's terms.1314
Sources indicate that Trump's frustration stemmed from the deal's unveiling without his prior knowledge, and the subsequent media backlash influenced his decision to impose the new condition. The Wall Street Journal editorial board noted that the deal's origins lay in the Biden Administration's approach to nuclear cooperation with Saudi Arabia.
As the situation unfolds, the implications of Trump's demands on U.S.-Saudi relations and nuclear nonproliferation efforts remain to be seen.
“Trump imposed a last-minute condition requiring Saudi Arabia to join the Abraham Accords, a move that blindsided his own nuclear negotiators and the Saudis who considered the deal a major triumph. The upending came after a flurry of criticism from Fox News and the Wall Street Journal editorial page, which questioned why the deal was made without a normalization agreement.”
CNN
