Thursday, October 05, 2023

Biden warned that nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia could lead to Middle East ‘arms race’
IN THE HISTORY OF BAD IDEAS,THIS IS A BAD IDEA

Rozina Sabur
Wed, 4 October 2023 

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and US President Joe Biden in 2022 - BANDAR ALGALOUD/VIA REUTERS

Democratic senators have written to Joe Biden to warn about a potential Middle East “arms race” if the US supports a nuclear programme for Saudi Arabia.

The White House has been working intensively to normalise relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia as part of a “mega deal” before the 2024 presidential election.

The so-called “mega deal” would see Saudi Arabia formally recognise Israel’s nationhood, becoming the biggest Arab power to do so since the Jewish state’s creation in 1948.


The deal includes a potential security agreement, the most sensitive element of which is Riyadh’s reported demand for Washington’s assistance in developing its civil nuclear programme.

It would make Saudi Arabia the second Middle Eastern country to enrich uranium after Iran, which declared in July 2022 that it had reached nuclear threshold status.
Strict guardrails

Washington would most likely impose strict guardrails on any such deal, including oversight over a US-run uranium enrichment centre on Saudi soil, with stringent checks to prevent its use for military purposes.

The Kingdom has already agreed to tougher checks by the UN’s nuclear oversight organisation, the International Atomic Energy Agency, suggesting this too could be an American condition to advancing its ambitions.

But the Kingdom’s de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has admitted that if Iran builds a nuclear weapon, “we have to get one [too]”.

In a letter to Mr Biden on Wednesday, 20 Democratic senators said that peace between Israel and its neighbours is a “longstanding goal of US foreign policy”, but outlined a number of “parameters” for any agreement.

They noted that, historically, similar US agreements “have only been provided to the closest of US allies: democracies that share our interests and our values”.

“A high degree of proof would be required to show that a binding defence treaty with Saudi Arabia... aligns with US interests,” they said.

They added that “careful deliberation” was needed to ensure US assistance to develop a civilian nuclear programme “does not contribute to a regional arms race”.
Landmark agreement

The signatories included party elders Elizabeth Warren, the Massachusetts senator; Chris Murphy, a member of the senate foreign relations committee; and Bernie Sanders, an independent senator for Vermont who caucuses with the Democrats.

The letter underscored the steep obstacles the Biden administration would face in Congress if it is able to broker a landmark agreement that would open diplomatic ties between two long-time adversaries in the Middle East.

Backers of Mr Biden’s deal believe a US security agreement with Riyadh will cement it as an ally, while Russia and China lurk in the background.

The negotiations gained momentum last month following Mr Biden’s meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister.

However, there are still a number of issues, including a Palestinian component, to negotiate before any final agreement can take place.

Behnam Ben Taleblu, a fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies think tank, told The Telegraph: “Those opposing Saudi Arabia’s attempt to get domestic enrichment but supported the JCPOA should have seen the writing on the wall when they blessed a flawed nuclear deal granting Tehran, Riyadh and Washington’s enemy, domestic enrichment.

“A nuclear cascade was always coming.”

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