US to discuss cooperation in Nuclear deal with Saudis
\nWritten by jafrianews<\/p>\n
JNN 31 July 2011 : The Obama administration plans to resume talks with Saudi Arabia about nuclear cooperation, according to senior U.S. officials, in a move aimed at boxing in Iran and keeping an eye on Riyadh\u2019s strategic ambitions.<\/p>\n
A team of State Department and Department of Energy officials is expected to visit Riyadh as early as next week to discuss with senior Saudi officials their plans for pursuing nuclear power, according to people briefed on the trip.<\/p>\n
The White House\u2019s decision is already facing opposition from members of Congress who worry about sharing nuclear technologies with countries in today\u2019s increasingly unstable Middle East. WSJ<\/p>\n
HIGHLIGHTS<\/p>\n
Officials from President Barack Obama\u2019s administration plan to head to Riyadh in the coming week for nuclear talks, the sources said. AFP<\/p>\n
The U.S. has recently concluded civilian nuclear trade deals \u2014 or so-called \u201c123\u201d agreements \u2014 with India and the United Arab Emirates and is in advanced discussions with countries including Jordan, Vietnam, and South Korea. CSM<\/p>\n
But Saudi Arabia\u2019s interest in such an accord has raised intense suspicions, particularly in the U.S. Congress. WSJ<\/p>\n
\u201cI am astonished that the Administration is even considering a nuclear-cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia,\u201d said Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R., Fla.), chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, on Friday.<\/p>\n
\u201cSaudi Arabia is an unstable country in an unstable region, with senior officials openly proclaiming that the country may pursue a nuclear-weapons capability.\u201d WSJ<\/p>\n
One House staffer who was informed on the administration\u2019s planned talks, but could speak only on condition of anonymity, said, \u201cIt\u2019s an unstable country in an unstable region, and \u2014 fairly or unfairly \u2014 people think 9\/11 when they think of Saudi Arabia. It would be an extremely hard sell,\u201d CSM<\/p>\n
A spokesman for the Saudi Embassy in Washington declined to comment Friday. The Saudi government has repeatedly said that it is against the development of nuclear weapons. WSJ<\/p>\n
FACTS & FIGURES<\/p>\n
Saudi Arabia is the world\u2019s largest oil exporter, with one-fifth of the world\u2019s proven reserves. The kingdom says it wants nuclear power so it does not have to burn lucrative fossil fuels at its power plants. AFP<\/p>\n
Saudi Arabia has also been pursuing nuclear-cooperation agreements with South Korea, Japan, France and Russia. Riyadh could move to build nuclear reactors without any U.S. involvement. WSJ<\/p>\n
Saudi Arabia signed an agreement with the United States in 2008 during a visit by then president George W. Bush that would give the kingdom access to enriched uranium \u2014 meaning, unlike Iran, it would not need to master the nuclear fuel cycle. AFP<\/p>\n
President Barack Obama signed such a deal with the United Arab Emirates in 2009 that is now viewed by the White House as a model because the UAE committed not to produce its own nuclear fuel. WSJ …source<\/a><\/p>\n