NEW YORK (VINnews) — U.S. President Donald Trump announced Thursday that a proposed civilian nuclear agreement with Saudi Arabia will move forward only if the kingdom joins the Abraham Accords, tying the deal to normalization with Israel.

“The agreement being worked out between the United States Department of Energy and Saudi Arabia, dealing only with non-military use, as already exists in Iran and the United Arab Emirates (and others), will be approved, but it is completely contingent upon Saudi Arabia joining the highly respected and very successful Abraham Accords,” Trump wrote.

“The United States has no objection to civilian nuclear facilities (without enrichment).”

Trump’s statement appears aimed at easing both domestic and international concerns over the agreement. By reinstating the linkage between civilian nuclear cooperation and the Abraham Accords, he echoed a condition that had been championed by former President Joe Biden, while also addressing Israeli concerns over the proposed deal. No timeline for Saudi Arabia’s potential accession to the accords was announced.

The president also addressed recent Houthi attacks on Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, issuing a warning to the Iran-backed group.

“I am very disappointed in them because until now they have acted in a very professional and smart manner,” Trump said. “Please consider this an official notice: if they do it again, the United States will hold Iran responsible, because the Houthis are an arm of Tehran. A heavy military punishment will be imposed on Iran, and of course on the Houthis themselves.”

The remarks came one day after the United States announced it had signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia to assist the kingdom in developing a civilian nuclear program. Unlike the proposal advanced by the Biden administration, the agreement does not require Saudi Arabia to normalize relations with Israel and does not include the so-called “gold standard” of international safeguards designed to prevent the diversion of civilian nuclear technology for military purposes.

In a statement announcing the agreement, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said that, alongside the deal allowing American companies to develop civilian nuclear infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, the two countries had signed a separate safeguards agreement governing oversight of the program. However, unlike similar arrangements reached with other countries, the oversight agreement was concluded solely between the United States and Saudi Arabia, rather than with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), leading some nonproliferation experts to view it as less stringent.

Negotiations between Washington and Riyadh over a civilian nuclear program have been underway for several years. During the Biden administration, U.S. assistance was offered as part of a broader package that included Saudi normalization with Israel. After those negotiations stalled, the Trump administration continued talks with Riyadh and reportedly removed the normalization requirement. According to previous reports, a draft agreement was finalized in October 2025, but signing was delayed because of the war with Iran and concerns over potential opposition in Congress. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that Trump gave final approval for the agreement last week.

According to previous reporting, Israel had rejected Saudi Arabia’s demand for a credible pathway toward a Palestinian state as part of a normalization agreement.

Israeli military analyst Nadav Eyal reported that during the summer of 2024, discussions between the Biden administration and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman produced a broad framework that included a hostage deal in Gaza, an end to the war, continued Israeli security control along a perimeter inside Gaza, and a post-war administration replacing Hamas.

According to the report, Mohammed bin Salman told U.S. officials: “I am willing to send Saudi soldiers to administer Gaza.” The proposal envisioned the crown prince emerging as a regional peacemaker, with Saudi Arabia, as custodian of Islam’s holiest sites, leading efforts to end the conflict.

Under the framework, all civilian hostages would be released, followed by a permanent ceasefire and the establishment of a new governing authority in Gaza in place of Hamas. Saudi Arabia and Israel would then proceed toward normalization, with Israel committing to a realistic pathway toward a Palestinian state.

According to the report, the final formula accepted by the Saudi crown prince included an Israeli commitment that a Palestinian state would be established within five to seven years. Saudi officials reportedly reassured Israel that if implementation were delayed, “we will blame Mahmoud Abbas. We will not blow up the agreement in 2034 just because a state has not yet been established.”