Jammu, July 23 -- Impact on the security of the Gulf states will be disastrous

By Asad Mirza

Washington and Riyadh have signed a civilian nuclear cooperation pact that could let Saudi Arabia enrich uranium on its own soil. Announced this week and now headed to Congress, the deal marks a historic shift in US nonproliferation policy, alarms Israel and threatens to reshape the regional balance of power just as the US and Iran remain locked in confrontation.

The latest US-Saudi Arabia nuclear agreement, formalised under Section 123 of the US Atomic Energy Act, gives American firms legal access to build out Saudi Arabia's civilian nuclear programme, alongside separate bilateral safeguards accord signed by Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Sau...