President Donald Trump has sent Congress a draft agreement with Saudi Arabia on civil nuclear energy, Reuters reports. However, he stressed that the pact will only come into force if the kingdom normalizes relations with Israel.
It is unclear how Trump expects sending the nuclear deal to Congress, which has 90 days to review it, to contribute to achieving his goals. The American president indicated that the deal could happen if Riyadh joins the so-called Abraham Accords, which normalize diplomatic relations between Israel and some Arab countries.
Trump made this a mandatory condition after agreeing to the nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia. Former President Joe Biden also pushed for a nuclear deal and wanted to tie it to the agreements in question.
Saudi Arabia has demanded an irreversible path to the creation of a Palestinian state as a condition for recognizing Israel.
The 30-year nuclear deal includes the construction of AP1000 reactors, a project worth tens of billions of dollars that would benefit Westinghouse.
If Congress does not object to the deal within 90 business days, it will go into effect. If Congress rejects the agreement, Trump can veto it, which requires a two-thirds majority in Congress to override.