Trump sends Saudi civil nuclear agreement to Congress for review– www.france24.com

President Donald Trump has submitted to Congress for review an agreement with Saudi Arabia aimed at bolstering the kingdom’s civilian nuclear program, but continues to insist that it won’t move forward if Saudi Arabia doesn’t normalise relations with Israel, according to a Trump administration official.

The classified document was submitted to Capitol Hill on Monday as required by the Atomic Energy Act, according to the administration official, a congressional aide, and two others familiar with the matter. All four spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to comment publicly on the classified matter.

The agreement was signedlast month in Washington by US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and his Saudi counterpart. But the next day, Trump announced he was requiring the Saudis to normalise relations with Israel through the Abraham Accords as part of the pact — raising doubts that the agreement would come to fruition.

Neither the administration official nor the others familiar with the matter would comment on whether Trump’s call for the Saudis to join the accords is detailed in the classified document submitted for the congressional review.