Report: Netanyahu pressuring Israel’s nuclear agency not to oppose Saudi enrichment

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is exerting heavy pressure on members of Israel’s Atomic Energy Commission not to oppose uranium enrichment in Saudi Arabia as part of a potential deal that would see the two nations normalize relations, Channel 12 news reports.

US support for a Saudi civilian nuclear program is a key demand by Riyadh for the agreement, though officials in both Israel and the US have expressed concern over the prospect of enrichment on Saudi soil.

The network’s Nir Dvori says nuclear experts in Israel are stressing the need for very close American oversight over the process if it is agreed, and that there must be assurances from the US as to what the consequences would be if the Saudis later deviate from the agreements.

Netanyahu’s office reacts by saying the report is “untrue.”

Mutiple reports note that both Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden firmly oppose enrichment of uranium by the Saudis on their own soil, and that what is being discussed is a US-run enrichment facility in Saudi Arabia that will see Riyadh supply the raw materials and receive the finished product, without access to the enrichment technology.