SAUDI ARABIASaudi Arabia has kept nuclear weapons option open: Report

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Classified US intelligence assessments recently provided to Congress conclude that Saudi Arabia has not ruled out developing a nuclear weapons program, a report says, months after Riyadh and Washington signed a bilateral “civil nuclear cooperation” agreement.

The Washington Post carried the report on Friday, citing US officials as saying that the assessment was included in intelligence documents submitted to lawmakers alongside material from the US State Department.

According to the report, the intelligence assessment has prompted congressional opposition to the “civil nuclear arrangement,” with a coalition of Democratic lawmakers “raising concerns” over its potential implications for nuclear non-proliferation.

Trump administration advances Saudi nuclear deal, leaves door open to enrichment: Report https://t.co/TqD3Wd5qb7

"With this deal, the Trump administration is departing from precedent, adopting looser restrictions, and caving to Saudi demands by agreeing to a process that is all but certain to allow Riyadh to acquire the means to enrich uranium and possibly develop nuclear weapons," the lawmakers, led by Senators Ed Markey and Jeff Merkley, wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The State Department, however, defended the arrangement in a statement to The Post, saying that Washington "does not and will not support a Saudi nuclear weapon program."

Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman has also portrayed Riyadh's nuclear effort as “civilian in nature.” He said earlier that the program remained "peaceful" and operated under "the highest levels of responsibility and transparency."

The agreement is currently subject to a 90-session-day congressional review period following its submission in August.

House Democrats have introduced a Joint Resolution of Disapproval against the agreement.

Nonproliferation experts warn that allowing Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium could eventually enable a military nuclear program, with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman having previously indicated that the kingdom would seek nuclear weapons “if they (Iran) get one.”

The Islamic Republic has categorically and unexceptionally ruled out either pursuing or maintaining non-conventional weapons, citing a relevant religious decree issued by the martyred Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei.

Iran’s non-pursuit of the weapons has invariably been proven by every International Atomic Energy Agency report issued on the Islamic Republic’s peaceful nuclear energy program.

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