Trump puts Riyadh before a choice: Normalization with Israel or a nuclear deal?

Saudi Arabia’s refusal to join the Abraham Accords could affect US President Donald Trump’s decision on whether to keep the civilian nuclear cooperation agreement between Washington and Riyadh in effect, TodayPress TV reports.

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright discussed the issue at a press conference.

“In the end, this is President Trump’s decision,” Wright said in response to a question about the future of the bilateral nuclear agreement if Saudi Arabia does not normalize relations with Israel, contrary to the White House’s demands.

“But I think he (Trump – ed.) speaks about this very openly. He has made it completely clear for years that he wants Saudi Arabia, which has been a US ally and partner in the Middle East for years, to join the Abraham Accords. The US leader wants these two things to happen together. I think he sees a window of opportunity to achieve this,” Wright added.

The US-Saudi civilian nuclear agreement was submitted to Congress for review this week, while the Trump administration has maintained that its implementation is conditional on Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords.

Aysel Matlab