Folks, I almost spilled my coffee reading this one. The Trump administration has sent a nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia to Congress, and it’s got all the makings of a real soap opera. According to CNN, the deal could allow for uranium enrichment on Saudi soil, which is just what we all needed to worry about. And the best part? The agreement is set to go into effect in 90 days unless Congress does something about it.
The White House is saying that the deal won’t move forward unless Saudi Arabia joins the Abraham Accords initiative, which creates diplomatic ties with Israel. But here’s the thing: the agreement itself doesn’t actually include a provision mandating that Saudi Arabia join. So, it’s all a bit confusing, to say the least. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said that the nuclear agreement and Abraham Accords negotiations “will be worked in parallel,” which sounds like a whole lot of diplomatic juggling.
Now, I’m no expert, but it seems like the administration is trying to have its cake and eat it too. They want to make a deal with Saudi Arabia, but they also want to use it as leverage to get them to play nice with Israel. And all the while, they’re keeping the actual text of the agreement classified, which is just a little unusual, to say the least. Traditionally, only a small portion of civil nuclear cooperation agreements are classified, so this is a bit of a departure from the norm.
The International Atomic Energy Agency’s director-general, Rafael Grossi, is saying that they’ll have to review and approve the safeguards agreement, which is just a fancy way of saying that they’ll be keeping an eye on things. And Scott Roecker, who oversees nuclear materials security work for the Nuclear Threat Initiative nonprofit, thinks that the administration might just refuse to finalize the agreement if Saudi Arabia doesn’t play ball. It’s all a bit of a mess, if you ask me.
The deal itself is a bit of a doozy, with provisions for uranium enrichment and all sorts of other things that make my head spin. And the fact that the administration is keeping it all under wraps just adds to the intrigue. I mean, what are they hiding? It’s not like we haven’t seen this movie before, folks. The diplomatic condition that Trump announced after the deal was signed was a surprise to the administration’s own nuclear negotiators, which just goes to show that this whole thing is a bit of a wild card.
In the end, it’s all just a big game of diplomatic chicken, with the administration trying to get Saudi Arabia to do what they want. And who knows, maybe it’ll all work out in the end. But one thing’s for sure: it’s going to be a wild ride. So, buckle up, folks, and let’s see where this thing takes us. And who knows, maybe we’ll all learn something new about the intricacies of nuclear diplomacy. But I’m not holding my breath. After all, as they say, “you can’t make this stuff up” – and I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what’s happening here.
Armchair patriot. Believes in the free market, cold beer, and that there’s always a guy named George behind every CNN segment.
Former remote-throwing champion turned #1 couch commentator on liberal panic in the media. Born in Texas (or so his mug says), he earned a degree in Fake Newsology & Beer Philosophy from YouTube University.
