US Signs 30-Year Nuclear Pact With Saudi Arabia Allowing Enrichment Study

The United States and Saudi Arabia have concluded a civilian nuclear cooperation agreement that opens the possibility of domestic uranium enrichment in the kingdom after a two-year joint study. The pact, signed on July 23, 2026, by U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, runs for 30 years and falls under the standard Section 123 framework that requires congressional review before taking effect.

The agreement grants U.S. companies priority access to Saudi nuclear infrastructure projects while requiring any enrichment facility to meet commercial viability tests and nonproliferation standards. If the study concludes enrichment should proceed, Saudi Arabia would be barred from pursuing it independently or with non-U.S. partners for ten years. The text does not impose the stricter “gold standard” limits contained in the 2009 U.S.-UAE agreement, which explicitly prohibited domestic enrichment and reprocessing.

Administration officials framed the deal as a means to keep Saudi nuclear business inside the U.S. supply chain and away from Chinese or Russian suppliers. Energy Secretary Wright stated the pact “upholds the highest standards of nuclear safety and nonproliferation.” Secretary of State Marco Rubio added that no agreement would be reached that creates proliferation risk.

Critics in Congress and nonproliferation organizations countered that the terms set a weaker precedent. Rep. Gregory Meeks, ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, called for explicit limits on enrichment and reprocessing plus adoption of the IAEA Additional Protocol. Arms Control Association director Kelsey Davenport warned that bilateral arrangements bypassing IAEA mechanisms could encourage other suppliers to follow suit.

The timing coincides with heightened U.S.-Iran tensions. Past Saudi statements, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s 2018 remark that the kingdom would match any Iranian nuclear weapon, remain on record. The pact contains no requirement that Saudi Arabia normalize relations with Israel, a condition that earlier U.S. administrations had linked to nuclear technology transfers.

Congress can block the agreement only through joint disapproval followed by a two-thirds override of a presidential veto. Lawmakers have not yet received the full classified text. Saudi officials have said the program aims to diversify electricity generation and reduce oil consumption for domestic power.