Deal takes effect automatically unless Congress objects within 90 legislative days
Whether Saudi Arabia will normalize ties with Israel remains a key question
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![US President Donald Trump and Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman [AP]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/08/26/rcv.YNA.20260802.PAP20260802142901009_P1.jpg)
President Donald Trump has submitted to Congress a nuclear cooperation agreement — known as a "123 agreement" — concluded with Saudi Arabia, the Wall Street Journal and other outlets reported Tuesday (local time).
Under US law, a nuclear cooperation agreement with a foreign country takes effect automatically if Congress raises no objection within 90 legislative days of submission.
The US-Saudi nuclear pact establishes a framework for building nuclear power plants in Saudi Arabia and transferring American nuclear technology and equipment. The agreement has drawn growing controversy, however, because it leaves open the possibility of uranium enrichment on Saudi soil.
If the agreement clears Congress and enters into force, the two countries would conduct a two-year commercial feasibility study, after which US companies could build uranium enrichment facilities inside Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia has also rejected the Additional Protocol, the International Atomic Energy Agency's most stringent safeguards mechanism.
Andrea Stricker, a researcher at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, warned the Wall Street Journal that "Congress should oppose an agreement that opens the door to uranium enrichment on Saudi soil," adding that "even if it is a US-operated factory, this would end decades of American nonproliferation policy aimed at preventing the spread of sensitive nuclear fuel manufacturing technology."
The deal has also drawn criticism for what critics call a double standard: the United States fought a war citing Iran's nuclear program as justification, yet is now allowing Saudi Arabia to pursue uranium enrichment — the foundational step toward nuclear weapons development.
Even if Congress opposes the agreement, blocking it would be extremely difficult. Defeating it would require a joint resolution of both chambers capable of overriding a presidential veto — meaning a two-thirds majority — which is all but impossible given the current composition of Congress.
Another sticking point is whether Saudi Arabia will join the Abraham Accords — establishing formal ties with Israel — a condition Trump demanded in exchange for approving the nuclear pact. Trump announced the condition only after the two governments signed the agreement last month.
A US administration official said the president's position remains that the nuclear agreement will move forward only if Saudi Arabia joins the Abraham Accords.
During the Joe Biden administration, Saudi Arabia had sought to normalize relations with Israel in exchange for a mutual defense treaty and a nuclear cooperation agreement with the United States, but withdrew from that effort after the Gaza war broke out in October 2023.
mokiya@heraldcorp.com
