Rosen Presses Hunt on Saudi-Israel Normalization

Senate hearing questions whether Saudi Arabia must join the Abraham Accords before the U.S. advances a civil nuclear deal.

Updated on Nov. 15, 2026 in International Relations

Wide photograph of the United States Capitol dome across an empty pale stone plaza under overcast sky, with a bare marble bench in the foreground. — Senator Jacky Rosen pressed Trump nominee Wesley Hunt on Wednesday over whether Saudi Arabia must join the Abraham Accords before a U.S. civil nuclear deal advances. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Should the U.S. make its nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia depend on Saudi recognition of Israel?

At a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, Senator Jacky Rosen pressed Wesley Hunt, Donald Trump's nominee to be Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, on whether normalization with Israel must come first. The U.S. and Saudi Arabia signed a civil nuclear cooperation agreement that was presented to Congress without requiring Saudi Arabia to join the Abraham Accords.

Why it matters

Trump has said the nuclear deal is subject to Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords, while the proposed agreement itself does not include that requirement. Saudi Arabia has publicly ruled out normalization with Israel until a two-state solution is reached, leaving a gap between the administration's stated condition and the text Congress is reviewing.

The proposed civil nuclear cooperation agreement was submitted to Congress without a requirement that Saudi Arabia join the Abraham Accords. Hunt's term, if confirmed, would run 2 years, and the status of any normalization talks remains unresolved.

The players

Wesley Hunt

Wesley Hunt is Donald Trump's nominee to serve as U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, a post that would place him at the center of Washington's relations with the Kingdom.

Jacky Rosen

Jacky Rosen is a U.S. Senator from Nevada and the Ranking Member of the Senate Near East Subcommittee, where she has pressed on Middle East diplomacy.

Donald Trump

Donald Trump is the current President of the United States, who has tied the civil nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia to the expansion of the Abraham Accords.

The details

Rosen, Ranking Member of the Near East Subcommittee, asked Hunt whether Saudi Arabia must normalize relations with Israel before the U.S. moves forward with the nuclear agreement. Hunt responded that normalization is part of the negotiation process, and said that if confirmed his task over the next two years is to get as close as possible to normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel.

November 14, 2026: The U.S. and Saudi Arabia signed the civil nuclear cooperation agreement.
November 15, 2026: The Senate Foreign Relations Committee held the hearing on Hunt's nomination.
The day after the signing: Trump made his remark linking the nuclear deal to the Abraham Accords.

Political Context

The push for Saudi Arabia to join the Abraham Accords, the normalization framework from Trump's first administration, is the standard Senators are now testing against a nuclear agreement the administration has already sent to Congress. The Saudi refusal to normalize before a two-state solution, a position that predates this agreement, shows how far the stated condition sits from Riyadh's own stated terms.

The outcome shapes whether the U.S. nuclear cooperation with Saudi Arabia proceeds on its current terms or is conditioned on normalization with Israel. Readers tracking U.S. nuclear exports and Middle East diplomacy will see how the Ambassador's confirmation and the agreement's conditions develop.

The takeaway

The gap between Trump's stated condition and the text of the nuclear agreement is the key point to watch. Following how Congress and the nominee address that gap will clarify whether normalization becomes a binding requirement or remains an aspiration.