By COLLIN BINKLEY, AAMER MADHANI and MICHELLE L. PRICE<\/p>\n
WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 President\u00a0Donald Trump<\/a>\u00a0said Thursday that\u00a0a new agreement<\/a>\u00a0reached with Saudi Arabia for a civilian nuclear program will require the kingdom to normalize relations with Israel through the Abraham Accords.<\/p>\n In a post on social media, the Republican president said the deal does not allow for enrichment of uranium. Nonproliferation experts have raised concerns that the deal fails to include guardrails to prevent enrichment of uranium to weapons-grade levels.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s post said the agreement \u201cwill be approved, but is totally subject to Saudi Arabia joining the very respected and successful\u00a0Abraham Accords<\/a>.\u201d He added that the U.S. \u201cis not opposed to Civil (Non-Enriched) Nuclear Facilities.\u201d<\/p>\n The Saudis have made clear that normalizing relations with Israel would first require the establishment of a clear path for\u00a0Palestinian statehood<\/a>. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has\u00a0rejected the idea of Palestinian statehood<\/a>\u00a0as being untenable for his country\u2019s security.<\/p>\n The Saudi Embassy in Washington declined to comment Thursday on Trump\u2019s assertion that the deal will require the kingdom to join the accords.<\/p>\n Netanyahu\u2019s office in a statement applauded the prospect of Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords as a \u201chistoric leap forward for peace in the Middle East.\u201d The statement made no mention of the deal to bolster Saudi\u2019s civil nuclear program.<\/p>\n Trump has sought to build on the 2020 agreements, which expanded the number of Arab and Muslim-majority nations with diplomatic ties with Israel. Saudi Arabia is the most important Arab power in the Middle East, and Trump believes the kingdom joining the accords is critical to establishing long-term stability in the region.<\/p>\n The new nuclear deal announced Wednesday is expected to last 30 years and involve U.S. firms in the program\u2019s development. It could allow for the building of a uranium-enrichment facility in Saudi Arabia following a joint U.S.-Saudi study, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n The agreement is to be submitted to Congress for review, according to the U.S. and Saudi governments.<\/p>\n The agreement does not include the International Atomic Energy Agency\u2019s \u201cadditional protocol,\u201d which would allow for more monitoring, inspections and verification, according to a second person familiar with the decision.<\/p>\n The oil-rich kingdom\u2019s Energy Ministry on Wednesday said the agreement bolsters \u201cefforts to diversify energy sources, advance cutting-edge technologies, and expand opportunities for cooperation and investment in ways that serve the mutual interests of the two friendly countries.\u201d<\/p>\n Enrichment is not an automatic path to a nuclear weapon \u2014 a nation also must master other steps, including the use of synchronized high explosives, for instance. But it does open the door to weaponization, which has fueled concerns over\u00a0Iran\u2019s program<\/a>.<\/p>\n Administration says deal is good for U.S. firms<\/p>\n Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters Thursday in Manila that the agreement would make certain that Saudi Arabia works with American companies instead of \u201ccompetitors\u201d to build its civil nuclear program. China, South Korea, France and Russia are among alternative partners that Riyadh could look to.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not the only show in town, but we\u2019re the best show in town,\u201d Rubio said. \u201cWe want to make sure that it\u2019s our companies they\u2019re picking.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump has talked up his push to extend\u00a0the Abraham Accords<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 which also formalized commercial ties between Israel and some Arab and Muslim-majority nations \u2014 as key to his plan for bringing long-term stability to the Middle East. But the aftermath of\u00a0Israel\u2019s war in Gaza<\/a>\u00a0and the nearly 5-month-old\u00a0U.S. and Israel war against Iran<\/a>\u00a0have complicated Trump\u2019s push to expand the accords.<\/p>\n