Former President Donald Trump stated on Thursday that Saudi Arabia must recognize Israel to secure a civil nuclear deal with the United States. This announcement follows criticism after Trump revealed the agreement on Wednesday, with some experts expressing concerns that it could allow the Gulf kingdom to acquire an atomic weapon.
Trump insisted that the proposed deal would involve "no enrichment of material" and would be "pertains only to non-military use." He added that the agreement "will be approved" but is "totally subject to Saudi Arabia joining the very respected and successful Abraham Accords."
Trump brokered the Abraham Accords during his first term, leading to normalization agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Sudan, Morocco, and Kazakhstan have since joined the accords.
Saudi Arabia has not yet officially responded to Trump's latest condition for joining the accords. However, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has privately indicated that the kingdom cannot recognize Israel without a clear path toward Palestinian statehood. U.S. media reports have suggested that the deal could potentially allow Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium in the future.
During bilateral meetings in Riyadh in May of last year, Trump met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The Crown Prince has previously warned that if Iran develops a nuclear weapon, Saudi Arabia "will follow suit as soon as possible."
Experts have voiced concerns, with warnings that insufficient safeguards are in place to prevent nuclear proliferation in the Middle East, a region already considered unstable.