The United States and Saudi Arabia have signed a new civil nuclear cooperation agreement that could pave the way for the kingdom to develop a uranium enrichment facility for its civilian nuclear programme.

The agreement, signed by US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, includes a “123 agreement” and a bilateral safeguards framework that will guide future nuclear cooperation between the two countries.

The Trump administration said the deal strengthens commercial ties while upholding nuclear safety and non-proliferation standards. It is expected to allow a joint US-Saudi study on establishing a uranium enrichment facility and will be submitted to the US Congress for review.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisted the agreement would not increase the risk of nuclear proliferation, although experts have raised concerns that Saudi uranium enrichment capability could potentially be used for weapons development in the future.

The agreement comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East following the US and Israel’s military campaign against Iran’s nuclear programme.