JBIZNEWS | GLOBAL COMMERCE & NATIONAL SECURITY | OCTOBER 15, 2026

By Duvi Honig, Founder & CEO, Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce

WASHINGTON — Saudi Arabia holds some of the world’s largest oil reserves, commands enormous financial wealth and has spent billions on American military equipment. Yet a terrorist organization operating out of neighboring Yemen is striking its airports, threatening its energy infrastructure and disrupting global commerce.

Now President Donald Trump is advancing a nuclear cooperation agreement with that same kingdom.

The question is no longer simply whether Saudi Arabia can defend itself against the Houthis. It is whether the United States should help expand nuclear capabilities in a country whose defenses are already being penetrated by militants who have demonstrated their ability to seize territory, challenge governments and inflict enormous economic damage.

If the Houthis can create this much destruction without controlling Saudi Arabia, what happens if they eventually overrun the kingdom and gain access to its nuclear facilities and materials?

It is a danger Washington should confront before proceeding any further.

Former U.S. Envoy Warns of a Growing Global Threat

Tim Lenderking, who served as U.S. special envoy for Yemen from 2021 to 2025, warned Thursday that the Houthis have developed into an international security threat, increasingly capable of operating independently of Iran.

In remarks reported by Fox News, Lenderking described the group as a “clear and very present danger.”

His warning followed a devastating series of attacks against Saudi Arabia.

According to Saudi military officials, Houthi strikes against King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh killed 17 people and injured 333 between October 7 and October 11. The airport has reportedly faced 20 attacks since the beginning of October.

The militants have also struck Saudi Aramco’s headquarters in Dhahran, threatening facilities connected to one of the most important energy companies in the world.

Lenderking explained that the Houthis have developed their own weapons capabilities, smuggling operations and financing networks. Although Iran helped build their military strength, they no longer depend exclusively on Tehran to operate.

That makes the threat more difficult to contain.

Saudi Arabia is not facing a conventional army with comparable resources. It is facing a militant organization that has found ways to overcome vastly superior spending, sophisticated defense equipment and international military assistance.

A Small Militant Force Is Already Disrupting Global Commerce

The Houthis have demonstrated how much destruction an armed movement can inflict without possessing the economic or military strength of a major nation.

Their attacks threaten the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a vital maritime passage connecting the Red Sea with the Indian Ocean and international shipping routes through the Suez Canal.

Shipping companies facing missile and drone threats must contend with increased insurance expenses, longer voyages and higher operating costs.

These disruptions affect businesses and consumers far beyond the Middle East.

Manufacturers in Asia, importers in Europe and retailers in the United States depend on reliable shipping routes. When those routes become dangerous, the consequences spread through international supply chains.

The threat to Saudi oil infrastructure is even more consequential.

Saudi Arabia’s production capacity plays a major role in international energy markets. Attacks on its oil facilities, pipelines and shipping infrastructure can affect fuel supplies, transportation costs and business confidence worldwide.

On Thursday, Gulf stock markets declined as the Houthis threatened further attacks against Saudi Arabia following the strike on Aramco’s Dhahran headquarters.

The disruption has extended to international aviation, investment conferences, sporting events and tourism.

Saudi Arabia has the money, the oil and the advanced weapons. Yet the Houthis continue to inflict serious damage.

That is the weakness Washington must recognize.

Trump Is Advancing Nuclear Cooperation With Saudi Arabia

On July 22, the Trump administration signed a civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia.

The agreement establishes the foundation for a multibillion-dollar nuclear energy partnership and potentially opens the way for sensitive nuclear activities, subject to additional requirements.

The administration has described the arrangement as an economic opportunity that will expand American business while strengthening regional security.

But recent events expose a danger that cannot be dismissed by commercial agreements or diplomatic assurances.

Saudi Arabia cannot guarantee that its current government will remain in control forever.

Nor can it guarantee that armed groups will never penetrate its borders, seize territory or exploit a major political crisis.

The concern is not that Saudi Arabia’s current leadership is necessarily seeking to hand nuclear technology to terrorists.

The concern is that the nuclear facilities and capabilities established under today’s Saudi government could eventually be captured by forces hostile to the United States and the international community.

Civilian nuclear power is distinct from nuclear weapons, and capturing a reactor would not automatically give terrorists an atomic bomb. But access to sensitive nuclear materials and facilities could create serious risks of sabotage, theft, radiological attacks and nuclear proliferation.

The United States would be taking a long-term security risk that could outlive the Saudi leadership making the agreement.

The Arab Spring Showed How Quickly Governments Can Be Overrun

The Arab Spring should remain a central lesson in American foreign policy.

Beginning in 2010, uprisings swept across the Middle East and North Africa.

Long-established governments collapsed in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. Yemen descended into political upheaval and civil war.

Leaders who once appeared firmly in control suddenly lost their positions, while competing factions and armed movements fought for power.

Yemen itself offers a particularly relevant example.

The Houthis exploited years of conflict and political division to seize the capital, Sanaa, in 2014, eventually establishing control over substantial territory.

They did not begin as a global military power.

They grew through political disorder, territorial conquest, weapons acquisition and the weakening of established state authority.

Today that same movement threatens Saudi Arabia, international shipping and global energy markets.

There is no established evidence that the Houthis could currently conquer Saudi Arabia. But the Arab Spring demonstrated why a government’s present control cannot be assumed to last indefinitely.

A nuclear program cannot be secured merely by trusting the government that receives it today. It must remain secure even if that government falls tomorrow.

Saudi Arabia’s Wealth Does Not Make It Immune to Takeover

Saudi Arabia has enormous financial resources and some of the largest proven oil reserves in the world.

Its military spending ranks among the highest internationally.

Yet those advantages have not prevented the Houthis from inflicting deadly attacks and threatening essential infrastructure.

That contrast makes the proposed nuclear partnership particularly concerning.

The question is not whether Saudi Arabia can afford nuclear facilities.

It is whether the kingdom can protect them against an armed organization that has already demonstrated an ability to exploit military weaknesses and political disorder.

And the danger would not necessarily come only from the Houthis.

A future uprising, military breakdown or violent takeover could create opportunities for other extremist organizations or hostile regimes.

The fall of a government could place critical infrastructure under entirely different control from the leadership Washington originally trusted.

Once nuclear facilities and sensitive materials exist, the consequences of losing control could extend far beyond the kingdom’s borders.

Trump Should Reconsider the Nuclear Deal

The Trump administration has pursued closer economic and strategic relations with Saudi Arabia, including major investment and energy agreements.

But the nuclear agreement introduces risks that cannot be measured solely in billions of dollars or American jobs.

The Houthis are already disrupting international commerce and threatening one of the world’s most important oil-producing nations.

They are exposing weaknesses in a kingdom that has invested heavily in military protection.

And their own rise during Yemen’s political collapse demonstrates how quickly a militant organization can emerge as a territorial and regional power.

President Trump should reverse course on nuclear cooperation with Saudi Arabia rather than risk introducing capabilities that a future terrorist takeover could put in hostile hands.

This is not about whether the United States maintains its partnership with the Saudi government or supports the kingdom’s economic development.

It is about recognizing that some security risks cannot be undone once nuclear materials, facilities and sensitive capabilities are established.

The lesson from the Houthis is already unfolding in front of the world.

A relatively small militant force has disrupted international trade, threatened oil infrastructure, struck major airports and undermined the security of a wealthy nation.

If Saudi Arabia is struggling to contain that threat today, Washington must consider what could happen during a more serious military or political collapse.

The Arab Spring showed how rapidly governments can fall. Yemen showed how the Houthis can exploit that collapse and seize control.

America should not gamble on the assumption that Saudi Arabia could never face a similar loss of control.

Oil facilities can be rebuilt. Airports can reopen. Shipping routes can recover. But allowing nuclear capabilities to fall into terrorist hands could produce consequences that no economic recovery plan can reverse.

That is a risk President Trump should not take.

JBizNews Desk | Washington, D.C.

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