THE civil nuclear deal between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States has attracted immense attention from nuclear analysts, giving rise to the impression that something extraordinary has happened and that it will have a transformative impact on regional and global politics. Ironically, many analysts have failed to examine the agreement’s details, which are classified carefully. Moreover, they are underestimating Washington and Riyadh’s commitments and responsibilities as a supplier and recipient states, which are enshrined in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Nuclear Supplier Group. The US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman signed the peaceful nuclear cooperation agreement, known colloquially as 123 agreements (after the relevant section in the US Atomic Energy Act (AEA) of 1954), along with a bilateral safeguards agreement on July 23, 2026. The said agreement has political and commercial consequences. Simultaneously, it faces two important hurdles, ie, Trump’s Israel policy and the exaggerated fears over nuclear weapon proliferation, due to Saudi and the US civil nuclear deal.

The puzzling aspect is President Donald Trump’s association with the Abraham Accords, which he initiated to normalize Arab nations’ relations with Israel on September 15, 2020, despite Israel’s aggressive military doctrine in the Middle East and genocide of the........

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