No nuclear deal unless Saudi Arabia joins Abraham Accords: Trump
What's the story
US President Donald Trump has said he won't go ahead with a civil nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia unless the country agrees to normalize relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords. "In order to do it, they have to be a member of the Abraham Accords," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Friday.
Deal conditions
US energy secretary and Saudi counterpart sign nuclear deal
Trump's comments come after the US Department of Energy announced that Energy Secretary Chris Wright and his Saudi counterpart Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman had signed an agreement to develop Saudi Arabia's first commercial nuclear reactors.
The deal is now headed for congressional review.
Despite this, Trump clarified he didn't discuss the accords with Wright before the Cabinet member signed the deal, but it was always understood by all parties involved.
Diplomatic negotiations
Saudi Arabia has not yet commented on Trump's condition
Saudi Arabia has not yet commented on Trump's additional condition for the nuclear deal.
However, Trump expressed confidence that the two countries would eventually come to an agreement.
"At some point they'll join...and they'll do their civil, to echo it, civil nuclear," he said.
The proposed US-Saudi deal is expected to benefit Westinghouse Electric Company, co-owned by Canadian companies Cameco and Brookfield Asset Management.