S. Arabia May Have Uranium Enrichment  02/20 06:28

   Saudi Arabia could have some form of uranium enrichment within the kingdom 
under a proposed nuclear deal with the United States, congressional documents 
and an arms control group suggest, raising proliferation concerns as an atomic 
standoff between Iran and America continues.

   DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- Saudi Arabia could have some form of 
uranium enrichment within the kingdom under a proposed nuclear deal with the 
United States, congressional documents and an arms control group suggest, 
raising proliferation concerns as an atomic standoff between Iran and America 
continues.

   U.S. Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden both tried to reach a nuclear 
deal with the kingdom to share American technology. Nonproliferation experts 
warn any spinning centrifuges within Saudi Arabia could open the door to a 
possible weapons program for the kingdom, something its assertive crown prince 
has suggested he could pursue if Tehran obtains an atomic bomb.

   Already, Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan signed a mutual defense 
pact last year after Israel launched an attack on Qatar targeting Hamas 
officials. Pakistan's defense minister then said his nation's nuclear program 
"will be made available" to Saudi Arabia if needed, something seen as a warning 
for Israel, long believed to be the Middle East's only nuclear-armed state.

   "Nuclear cooperation can be a positive mechanism for upholding 
nonproliferation norms and increasing transparency, but the devil is in the 
details," wrote Kelsey Davenport, the director for nonproliferation policy at 
the Washington-based Arms Control Association.

   The documents raise "concerns that the Trump administration has not 
carefully considered the proliferation risks posed by its proposed nuclear 
cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia or the precedent this agreement may 
set."

   Saudi Arabia did not immediately respond to questions Friday from The 
Associated Press

   Congressional report outlines possible deal

   The congressional document, also seen by the AP, shows the Trump 
administration aims to reach 20 nuclear business deals with nations around the 
world, including Saudi Arabia. The deal with Saudi Arabia could be worth 
billions of dollars, it adds.

   The document contends that reaching a deal with the kingdom "will advance 
the national security interests of the United States, breaking with the failed 
policies of inaction and indecision that our competitors have capitalized on to 
disadvantage American industry and diminish the United States standing globally 
in this critical sector." China, France, Russia and South Korea are among the 
leading nations that sell nuclear power plant technology abroad.

   The draft deal would see America and Saudi Arabia enter safeguard deals with 
the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations' nuclear watchdog. 
That would include oversight of the "most proliferation-sensitive areas of 
potential nuclear cooperation," it added. It listed enrichment, fuel 
fabrication and reprocessing as potential areas.

   The IAEA, based in Vienna, did not immediately respond to questions. Saudi 
Arabia is a member state to the IAEA, which promotes peaceful nuclear work but 
also inspects nations to ensure they don't have clandestine atomic weapons 
programs.

   "This suggests that once the bilateral safeguards agreement is in place, it 
will open the door for Saudi Arabia to acquire uranium enrichment technology or 
capabilities -- possibly even from the United States," Davenport wrote. "Even 
with restrictions and limits, it seems likely that Saudi Arabia will have a 
path to some type of uranium enrichment or access to knowledge about 
enrichment."

   Enrichment isn't an automatic path to a nuclear weapon -- a nation also must 
master other steps including the use of synchronized high explosives, for 
instance. But it does open the door to weaponization, which has fueled the 
concerns of the West over Iran's program.

   The United Arab Emirates, a neighbor to Saudi Arabia, signed what is 
referred to as a "123 agreement" with the U.S. to build its Barakah nuclear 
power plant with South Korean assistance. But the UAE did so without seeking 
enrichment, something nonproliferation experts have held up as the "gold 
standard" for nations wanting atomic power.

   Saudi-US proposal comes amid Iran tensions

   The push for a Saudi-U.S. deal comes as Trump threatens military action 
against Iran if it doesn't reach a deal over its nuclear program. The Trump 
military push follows nationwide protests in Iran that saw its theocratic 
government launch a bloody crackdown on dissent that killed thousands and saw 
tens of thousands more reportedly detained.

   In Iran's case, it long has insisted its nuclear enrichment program is 
peaceful. However, the West and the IAEA say Iran had an organized military 
nuclear program up until 2003. Tehran also had been enriching uranium up to 60% 
purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels of 90% -- making it 
the only country in the world to do so without a weapons program.

   Iranian diplomats long have pointed to 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah 
Ali Khamenei's comments as a binding fatwa, or religious edict, that Iran won't 
build an atomic bomb. However, Iranian officials increasingly have made the 
threat they could seek the bomb as tensions have risen with the U.S.

   Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's day-to-day ruler, has 
said if Iran obtains the bomb, "we will have to get one."