(DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA) – Saudi Arabia is reportedly requesting the United States to provide the Middle East country with a nuclear technology as an exchange to agreeing to establish diplomatic relations with its long-time adversary, Israel.
Media reports state that Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, made this request for nuclear technology during a recent meeting with United States Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, in Riyadh recently.
The Crown Prince is also likely seeking increased access to United States military weaponry systems in exchange for the agreement to establish diplomatic relations with Tel Aviv.
Saudi Arabia is said to have laid out three conditions before normalizing diplomatic relations with Israel: access to modern United States military weaponry systems like THAAD, the establishment of joint defense between Saudi Arabia and the United States, and an agreement allowing Riyadh to obtain nuclear energy technology.
To obtain nuclear technology from the United States, the administration of President Joe Biden would need approval from the country’s Congress before sharing the technology with Saudi Arabia.
The United States Congress, which is influenced by pro-Israel lobbyists, is likely to oppose any agreement that would see Saudi Arabia acquiring nuclear technology from Washington.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also expected to face strong opposition if he agrees to allow the United States to share nuclear technology with Saudi Arabia.
Despite facing pressure from Riyadh for civilian nuclear technology, the United States is said to remain firm in refusing to share the technology with Saudi Arabia.
Washington’s stance aligns with Tel Aviv’s strong opposition to the United States providing nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia.
Riyadh wants to compete with Iran, which already possesses several nuclear power stations.
A former senior official at the Israel Atomic Energy Commission expressed concern that allowing Saudi Arabia to acquire nuclear technology could trigger a nuclear arms race in the Middle East.
“No matter how many assurances we receive from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA),” said Ariel Eli Levite, who served with the Israel Atomic Energy Commission from 2002 to 2007.
Israel’s concern is the risk of Saudi Arabia’s nuclear power plant becoming a target for terrorist groups.
Another concern in Tel Aviv is the possibility the reactor at the nuclear plant being converted for military-related operations.
Levite accused Saudi Arabia of being interested not only in nuclear technology for electricity generation but also in uranium enrichment technology for military purposes.
Faced with various obstacles to obtain nuclear power plant technology, Saudi Arabia is reported to be considering an offer from China to build a nuclear power plant in the Middle East, further evidence of the increasingly close diplomatic relations between Riyadh and Beijing.
China’s state agency, the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), has reportedly made an offer to construct a nuclear power plant in eastern Saudi Arabia near its borders with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to Riyadh officials.
Saudi Arabia plans to build 16 nuclear power plants in the country over 25 years at a cost of $80 billion in an effort to reduce its dependence on oil and gas, despite the fact that the country has the world’s second-largest oil and gas reserves.
Riyadh aims to compete with Iran, which already has dozens of nuclear power plants. — DSA
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