US President Donald Trump has formally approved a historic deal to build a civil nuclear program in Saudi Arabia. The 30-year deal is worth tens of billions of dollars.
The move was chosen to ensure the dominance of US firms in Riyadh without giving other powers an opening. Based on a joint review, US companies would also get the chance to build a uranium-enrichment plant there.
Pakistan’s English daily The Express reported on Wednesday, July 22, that two sources told Reuters the deal — to be submitted to Congress — did not include the safeguards needed to prevent nuclear-weapons development. The “gold standard,” which would have guaranteed a halt to uranium enrichment and the reprocessing of spent fuel, was dropped for Riyadh.
Meanwhile, strict monitoring has been imposed on Iran’s civil nuclear program. The deal with Riyadh does not include the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) “Additional Protocol,” leaving no path open for surprise inspections. With Tehran kept under constant international pressure, such a double standard by the United States puts regional security at further risk.
The “123 agreement,” signed by US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman, will soon be submitted to the US Congress. Through it, the US administration is creating an opening to bring Riyadh into the nuclear fuel cycle without any strict oversight.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report