Saudi Arabia's Nuclear Deal with US Hangs in Balance as Trump Reneges on Conditions

Saudi Arabia has long sought to partner with the United States on civilian nuclear power plants, and finally, in July 2026, they got their deal. The agreement was signed by US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and his Saudi counterpart, allowing American companies to develop and operate commercial nuclear power plants on Saudi soil.

The multi-billion dollar deal had been a long time coming, with previous presidents expressing openness to it but with two conditions: safeguards against Saudi use of enrichment for nuclear weapons and normalization of relations with Israel. With Donald Trump's return to the presidency in 2024, the Saudis hoped their moment had arrived.

The deal seemed to have paid off, but no sooner was it signed than Trump reneged on it. In a Truth Social post, he insisted that the deal did not include uranium enrichment and that Saudi Arabia must join the Abraham Accords before the deal could proceed. This has left the fate of the deal unclear.

The Saudis are likely puzzled by this turn of events, having invested heavily in Trump and his family, including licensing deals with the Trump Organization potentially worth billions of dollars. The kingdom may now see a nuclear force of its own as a condition of its survival in a post-American Middle East.