Nicolai Haugsted
Trump’s massive Saudi nuclear deal runs into trouble in Congress
Donald Trump’s ambitious nuclear cooperation plans with Saudi Arabia are heading toward a crucial test in Washington.
The president submitted the proposed agreement to Congress in August, triggering a 90-day review period that gives lawmakers an opportunity to intervene.
According to Reuters, four House Democrats have now taken that opportunity, introducing a resolution aimed at preventing the deal from taking effect.
At the heart of the dispute is a particularly sensitive question: how much freedom Saudi Arabia should have to develop its own nuclear capabilities.
Democrats try to hit the brakes
Representatives Gregory Meeks of New York, Brad Sherman and John Garamendi of California, and Don Beyer of Virginia introduced a resolution of disapproval Thursday in an attempt to block the agreement.
Their concerns largely focus on what the deal does not explicitly prohibit.
Saudi Arabia would not be barred from enriching uranium or reprocessing nuclear waste under the agreement, according to Reuters. Both technologies can serve civilian purposes, but they can also provide potential pathways toward producing material for nuclear weapons.
The four Democrats made their concerns clear in a joint statement:
“A region already gripped by conflict and escalation does not need another nuclear power.”
Trump’s administration maintains that the agreement contains the nonproliferation safeguards required under US law.
Critics have pointed toward Washington’s previous nuclear agreement with the United Arab Emirates.
The UAE agreed to restrictions on domestic uranium enrichment and the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel as part of its 2009 civil nuclear agreement with the United States. Such commitments have subsequently become known as the “gold standard” for American nuclear cooperation agreements.
Saudi Arabia has not made the same commitment under Trump’s proposed deal.
Concerns surrounding enrichment have followed negotiations over US-Saudi nuclear cooperation for years, making the omission particularly significant for lawmakers worried about nuclear proliferation.
Trump adds Israel to the equation
Another major question surrounds Saudi Arabia’s relationship with Israel.
Trump has said the nuclear agreement will only take effect if Riyadh normalizes relations with Israel.
Congressional aides cited by Reuters, however, say nothing in the actual agreement addresses that requirement.
Lawmakers have also pushed the administration for greater transparency over the full arrangement. Calls have been made for classified “side letters” agreed with Saudi Arabia to be released alongside the publicly available material.
Nuclear security is far from the only major issue attached to the agreement.
The proposed 30-year partnership calls for the construction of AP1000 nuclear reactors in Saudi Arabia, with the overall project potentially worth tens of billions of dollars.
Westinghouse could become a major beneficiary. The American nuclear technology company is jointly owned by Canada-based Cameco and Brookfield Asset Management.
Civil nuclear cooperation of this kind is governed by Section 123 of the Atomic Energy Act, which establishes the legal framework for significant US nuclear cooperation with foreign countries.
Congress has a deadline problem
Democrats may now face another opponent besides the Trump administration: the congressional calendar.
House Speaker Mike Johnson sent lawmakers home Wednesday until after the November 3 midterm elections, and no date has been established for a vote on the resolution.
Failure to act carries consequences of its own.
Under the Atomic Energy Act, peaceful nuclear cooperation agreements can take effect following the congressional review period unless lawmakers successfully pass legislation blocking them.
History also shows how difficult such an effort could be. Congress has passed numerous resolutions of disapproval on other matters over the years, but according to Reuters, no resolution targeting nuclear power or civil nuclear cooperation has ever successfully made it through the process.
Trump’s Saudi agreement therefore arrives with billions of dollars, nuclear safeguards and Middle East diplomacy tied together in the same package — while the 90-day clock in Washington keeps running.
