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Gone quiet · last update Sep 30, 2026 / Saudi Arabia

The US-Saudi nuclear deal and Trump's new conditions on it

Overview · reviewed October 28, 2026

In July 2026 the United States and Saudi Arabia signed a civilian nuclear cooperation agreement, a deal more than two decades in the making that would let the kingdom enrich uranium and reprocess nuclear waste, potential pathways to a nuclear weapon.[1][2] A day after the signing, President Donald Trump said it would depend on Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords and normalizing relations with Israel.[3][4] The administration sent the agreement to Congress for review in August,[5] and US intelligence agencies have told lawmakers that Saudi Arabia has not ruled out developing nuclear weapons.[6]

Read the timeline

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A day after the signing, President Donald Trump said it would depend on Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords and normalizing relations with Israel.[3][4] The administration sent the agreement to Congress for review in August,[5] and US intelligence agencies have told lawmakers that Saudi Arabia has not ruled out developing nuclear weapons.[6]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · weekly (UTC)

Week of 2025-05-05 (UTC): 3%, 7 of 201 tracked outlets (1 left, 2 center, 4 right)Week of 2025-05-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-05-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-05-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-06-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-06-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-06-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-06-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-06-30 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-07-07 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-07-14 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-07-21 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-07-28 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-08-04 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-08-11 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-08-18 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-08-25 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-09-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-09-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-09-15 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-09-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-09-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-10-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-10-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-10-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-10-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-11-03 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-11-10 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-11-17 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-11-24 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-15 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-05 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-30 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-04 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-11 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-18 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-25 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-15 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-13 (UTC): 1%, 7 of 559 tracked outlets (0 left, 7 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-07-20 (UTC): 15%, 84 of 562 tracked outlets (21 left, 35 center, 28 right)Week of 2026-07-27 (UTC): 2%, 14 of 561 tracked outlets (3 left, 7 center, 4 right)Week of 2026-08-03 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-10 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-17 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-24 (UTC): 3%, 15 of 466 tracked outlets (2 left, 10 center, 3 right)Week of 2026-08-31 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-07 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-14 (UTC): 1%, 4 of 480 tracked outlets (3 left, 1 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-09-21 (UTC): 1%, 3 of 479 tracked outlets (3 left, 0 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-09-28 (UTC): 1%, 3 of 476 tracked outlets (1 left, 1 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-10-05 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outlets, so far

LeftCenterRightLighter bar: this week so far

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 8 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (8 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Sep 28, 20261113 of 4761%
Sep 21, 20263003 of 4791%
Sep 14, 20263104 of 4801%
Aug 24, 2026210315 of 4663%
Jul 27, 202637414 of 5612%
Jul 20, 202621352884 of 56215%
Jul 13, 20260707 of 5591%
May 5, 20251247 of 2013%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Sep 30, 2026 · first reported · Headline from Casper Star-Tribune

    Fix the flawed nuclear deal

Background

Saudi Arabia had long sought US help developing a civil nuclear program, and the Trump administration said in May 2025 that it was "very excited" about the prospect.[7] In July 2026 CNN reported that the administration had tentatively agreed to let the kingdom enrich uranium without international safeguards meant to prevent weapons development.[8] Officials signed the pact at the Energy Department in Washington,[1] and the agreement sparked concern in the region.[9]

Trump's announcement the next day that the deal hinged on normalization with Israel appeared to differ from what officials had described.[4][3] On August 24 the administration transmitted the classified agreement to Congress, starting a 90-day review period under the Atomic Energy Act.[10][5] In September the Washington Post reported that classified intelligence assessments given to Congress said the Saudi government had not ruled out a nuclear weapons program.[6]

Supporting stories (10)
  1. Trump adds new condition to Saudi nuclear deal, says kingdom must normalize relations with Israel
  2. US says it reached nuclear power deal with Saudi Arabia
  3. Trump says Saudi nuclear pact requires kingdom to normalize Israel relations through Abraham Accords
  4. Trump places new condition on signed Saudi nuclear deal, says country must join Abraham Accords
  5. Trump admin sends Saudi nuclear deal that includes enrichment pathway to Congress
  6. Saudi Arabia open to possibly developing nuclear weapons
  7. Trump's trip to Saudi Arabia raises the prospect of US nuclear cooperation with the kingdom
  8. Nuclear deal that would permit uranium enrichment by Saudi Arabia in limbo awaiting Trump admin sign off
  9. Trump's hunt for leverage over Saudi Arabia fuels nuclear proliferation concerns
  10. Democrats look to stop Trump’s Saudi nuclear deal

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 14 recorded updates

September 2026

  1. Fix the flawed nuclear dealHeadline from Casper Star-Tribune · 1 outlet
  2. Saudi Arabia open to possibly developing nuclear weaponsHeadline from West Hawaii Today · 3 outlets
  3. Democrats look to stop Trump’s Saudi nuclear dealHeadline from Hawaiitribune Herald · 5 outlets

August 2026

  1. Trump admin sends Saudi nuclear deal that includes enrichment pathway to CongressHeadline from KVIA El Paso · 18 outlets

July 2026

  1. US-Saudi nuclear deal invites proliferation risks … unless safeguards are written inHeadline from The Conversation US · 16 outlets
  2. How Trump upended the Saudi nuclear deal less than 24 hours after its signingHeadline from KEYT Santa Barbara · 7 outlets
  3. Trump places new condition on signed Saudi nuclear deal, says country must join Abraham AccordsHeadline from KTVZ Bend · 19 outlets
  4. US says it reached nuclear power deal with Saudi ArabiaHeadline from Omaha World-Herald · 1 outlet
  5. Trump adds new condition to Saudi nuclear deal, says kingdom must normalize relations with IsraelHeadline from PBS NewsHour · 38 outlets
  6. US and Saudi Arabia reach historic nuclear energy deal, Trump administration announcesHeadline from Deutsche Welle · 48 outlets
  7. Trump says Saudi nuclear pact requires kingdom to normalize Israel relations through Abraham AccordsHeadline from The Republic · 17 outlets
  8. Trump's hunt for leverage over Saudi Arabia fuels nuclear proliferation concernsHeadline from ABC News · 27 outlets
  9. Nuclear deal that would permit uranium enrichment by Saudi Arabia in limbo awaiting Trump admin sign offHeadline from KEYT Santa Barbara · 7 outlets

May 2025

  1. Trump's trip to Saudi Arabia raises the prospect of US nuclear cooperation with the kingdomHeadline from MyNorthwest · 7 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →