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Is Trump's Saudi nuclear deal set to trigger a Middle East arms race? | The Herald
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Fusion42 · 26 July 2026 · Fusion42 review
Trump has negotiated a civil nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia that lacks the safeguards imposed on the UAE's 2009 agreement, including uranium enrichment restrictions and Additional Protocol inspections. The deal's approval is now conditional on Saudi normalisation with Israel, a requirement the kingdom has long refused absent Palestinian statehood progress.
◆ ◆ The Wire takeaway
If this deal passes without UAE-level safeguards, you're watching the precedent that loosens nuclear enrichment oversight across the region—and the first time a US nuclear export hinges on geopolitical leverage rather than non-proliferation rigour. Saudi Arabia now has a buyer for its political price, not its technical compliance.
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