US signs nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia

The US and Saudi Arabia have reached a nuclear cooperation deal.

The US energy department announced the "peaceful nuclear cooperation agreement" had been signed on Wednesday.

It said the deal would "lay the foundation for a decades-long, multi-billion-dollar partnership that advances several priority economic and strategic objectives, including nuclear nonproliferation".

The deal could potentially provide Saudi Arabia with uranium enrichment capability for its civilian nuclear programme.

The agreement will be reviewed by Congress, where it could face opposition from some US politicians who fear it would open new rounds of nuclear proliferation and competition. Congress has 90 session days to object the deal before it takes effect.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio has previously said any deal signed would not lead to proliferation.

The agreement was signed by US secretary of energy Chris Wright and his Saudi counterpart Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, alongside an accompanying bilateral safeguards agreement.

Mr Wright said the deals "reflect our two nations' shared commitment to strengthening US-Saudi commercial relations, delivering prosperity at home and security to our allies abroad".

He said the agreements "uphold the highest standards of nuclear safety and nonproliferation, while relying on the world's best nuclear technology and scientists".

However, a number of Democratic lawmakers have warned ⁠that the deal could trigger an arms race in the Middle East.

Senator Edward Markey said the agreement would "make us all less safe" and risks "allowing Saudi ​Arabia, a belligerent and authoritarian nation, to develop nuclear weapons technologies while starting a ​war with Iran under the guise of preventing an Iranian nuclear bomb".

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has previously said he does not want the country to build a nuclear weapon, but ⁠insisted it would if Iran did.

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Deal comes amid ongoing conflict

The announcement comes as the US and Iran continue to exchange fire, with Donald Trump repeatedly insisting throughout the conflict that Washington's aim is to prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

Mr Trump has in recent weeks threatened to strike Pickaxe Mountain, an area reportedly holding Iran's enriched uranium stockpile, while, in June last year, the US and Israel carried out strikes on several nuclear sites in Iran.

Saudi Arabia has been among the countries targeted in retaliatory strikes by Tehran throughout the war.

In recent days, it has also faced a reported naval blockade imposed by Yemen's Iranian-aligned Houthi rebel group.

(c) Sky News 2026: US signs nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia