Last thing Trump wants is military nuke program in Saudi: Netanyahu

Donald Trump has made Saudi Arabia's recognition of Israel a condition for a US-backed civilian nuclear programme in the kingdom. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has backed the demand.Trump had declared that the US would not move ahead with the nuclear agreement unless Riyadh joins the Abraham Accords. (File Photo: Reuters)Days after the US signed a landmark civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia, President Donald Trump added a new condition: Riyadh must first normalise ties with Israel. Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, has now thrown his support behind it. He said neither Israel nor the US wants Saudi Arabia to develop a military nuclear programme and described a future Saudi-Israel agreement as a potentially historic breakthrough.Asked about Trump's decision during an interview with Fox News, Netanyahu backed the US President's approach."Well, first of all, I think President Trump was absolutely right in stating that condition that Saudi Arabia would get a civilian nuclear program in exchange for normalization of relations with Israel. I stress civilian because the last thing we want -- and I'm sure the last thing the president wants -- is a military nuclear program in Saudi Arabia. Can we have this? Yes, I think it's possible."Netanyahu on the Saudi nuclear deal:Trump was absolutely right in stating that Saudi Arabia would get a civilian nuclear program in exchange for the normalization of relations with Israel.I stress "civilian" because the last thing we want—and I'm sure the last thing the pic.twitter.com/CXahoHeq5p— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 26, 2026Trump had declared that the US would not move ahead with the nuclear agreement unless Riyadh joins the Abraham Accords -- the US-brokered normalisation agreement between Israel and several Arab nations. Rather than focusing only on the nuclear agreement, Netanyahu portrayed it as part of a broader effort to expand the Abraham Accords, which he called one of the biggest diplomatic successes of Trump's first term."Remember that we had four peace agreements between Israel and Arab nations brokered by President Trump with working together with me. It's a great achievement, historic achievement, and obviously we'll be delighted if we could extend it to Saudi Arabia and other countries. And I think if we weaken Iran further, we will."TRUMP SAYS SAUDIS MUST RECOGNISE ISRAEL FOR NUCLEAR DEAL The proposed US-Saudi nuclear partnership appeared to move forward earlier this week when Washington announced a civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with Riyadh. But within a day, Trump added a condition: Saudi Arabia must first recognise Israel.Addressing reporters on Friday, Trump insisted there had been no confusion over the agreement, despite unveiling the deal before tying it to the Abraham Accords."No, nobody got out ahead," he said."I just say that in order to do it, they have to be a member of the Abraham Accords, which have been very successful. But it's time now that they do it."He said the condition had always been part of the understanding.The proposed agreement would allow the US to help Saudi Arabia build its first commercial nuclear power programme, with American companies expected to provide technology, expertise and oversight.While Trump later stressed there would be "no enrichment of material," the deal has drawn attention because of concerns over nuclear proliferation in the region. US officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, have said that American oversight would ensure the programme remains civilian.Saudi Arabia, however, has yet to respond to Trump's latest condition. Riyadh has consistently maintained that it will not establish formal diplomatic relations with Israel until there is a clear and irreversible path towards Palestinian statehood, which remains at odds with the current Israeli government's position.- EndsWith inputs from agenciesPublished By: Satyam SinghPublished On: Jul 26, 2026 21:46 IST