Saudi Arabia Announces Nuclear Plant, And It Could Have Huge Consequences For U.S.-Iran Relations

Saudi Arabia Announces Nuclear Plant, And It Could Have Huge Consequences For U.S.-Iran Relations

www.businessinsider.com

The government of Saudi Arabia has announced a new section of its capital Riyadh is set to be powered solely by nuclear energy. This will be the first nuclear power plant in the Gulf states, and the first in the broader Middle East.
If the U.S. government backs Saudi Arabia's bid to build a reactor, they'll be creating the potential for nuclear growth within the GCC, or Gulf Cooperation Council, whose members include Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, the UAE, and Oman.

(visit the link for the full news article)

Well this might be a little tricky. If this actually happens and US has nothing to complain about, tensions with Iran in the area will escalate even more. How do you guys think this will develop? This will also mean that the countries can export more oil , which could be very important in the future development in the region.

www.businessinsider.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Originally posted by Fatality


Well this might be a little tricky. If this actually happens and US has nothing to complain about, tensions with Iran in the area will escalate even more. How do you guys think this will develop?

Wow. What a spanner in the works of that diplomatic track.

I've no doubt the Saudi's would have similar reasons too. Need nuclear power to ship more oil that they can't refine themselves into petrol and want to reduce their reliance on importing petrol.

Want to reduce their carbon footprint and fight global warming. Need nuclear power for medical purposes.

Does anyone know if the Saudi's have signed the NPT?

Scratch that I just checked. Saudi Arabia is also a signatory to the NPT. Therefore they will be bound by the IAEA and also be entitled to ask for assistance in constructing a reactor for civilian purposes.


[edit on 21-4-2010 by belial259]

I think ur barking up the wrong tree

there is a difference between a country
enriching uranium at 2% for nuclear power
and enriching it at 20% weapons grade.

This should not be a problem as far as
US foreign policy goes. Why Iran is such
a problem is they want to trade their
2% in for 20% grade which the only use for that
is nuclear weapons.

Originally posted by boondock-saint
I think ur barking up the wrong tree

there is a difference between a country
enriching uranium at 2% for nuclear power
and enriching it at 20% weapons grade.

This should not be a problem as far as
US foreign policy goes.

But Saudi Arabia isn't exactly the most friendly bunch of people are they? Infact they're very nasty and more than a few of them hate America with a passion. Lets not forget Bin Laden himself was a Saudi. Do we want Bin Ladens friends and family to have nukes?

It is clear as day Iran wants nuclear weapons, they openly admit it by simply not denying it and by enriching uranium up to 20%. It is also clear as day Israel isn't going to let that percentage go more than that.

Originally posted by belial259
Do we want Bin Ladens friends and family to have nukes?

lol

they probably already own a couple
in our own silos.

reply to post by belial259

Saudis are the core of "islamist extremism" and main suppliers of all associated paramilitary forces, even reaching East Europe. This is so because they have money AND their holy lands are "defiled" by infidels, which is really the fault of corrupt royalty who are then again put there by the US. Crazy world.

reply to post by SassyCat


The world is mad...
and appears to me to be turning more upside down by the day

*shugs* what can we do about it...

Originally posted by SassyCat
Crazy world.

Sure is.

Sounds like a case of "Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer" A nuclear armed Israel is scary enough but if the Saudi's get nukes you can bet they'll use them at the drop of a hat for obscure reasons we don't understand.

Heh they might even use them against the USA because of the creators of South Park.

Originally posted by boondock-saint
I think ur barking up the wrong tree

there is a difference between a country
enriching uranium at 2% for nuclear power
and enriching it at 20% weapons grade.

This should not be a problem as far as
US foreign policy goes. Why Iran is such
a problem is they want to trade their
2% in for 20% grade which the only use for that
is nuclear weapons.

No, for weapons, it must be 95%, i believe the lowest acceptable enrichment for any weapons is 80%.

Xinhuanet

The report said Iran had so far produced around 1,000 kg of low-enriched uranium, an amount according to experts, was sufficient to produce weapons-degree enriched uranium with 95 percent purity required for one nuclear bomb.

They have enough material, but it's only at 3.5% enrichment. The 20% that they need is for medical research. While they have been offering to swop, something allowed for under the rules, the UN is just ignoring them.

They haven't broken laws yet. They're not even close to breaking them. 20% enriched uranium is "common" in the market, for medical research and power stations.

A Chernobyl in waiting then! I worked on building PP9, a Combined Cycle Power Station there in KSA just outside Riyadh in 96 and 97 and one time, whilst running up the turbine locally using our speedtronic Mk5, we switched control to the operators using the DCS and then they left the control room as the turbinbe was still ramping up, all of them at once, 'cos it was prayer time. All control of the turbine was under DCS control and the turbine nearly took off which would've oblitereated the turbine hall and killed everyone. Thankfully, one of our guys got up there PDQ and checked it. Saudis will need alot of help in running a nuclear plant, never mind building one!

reply to post by harryhaller


no...

Highly enriched uranium (HEU) has a greater than 20% concentration of 235U or 233U.

The fissile uranium in nuclear weapons usually contains 85% or more of 235U known as weapon(s)-grade, though for a crude, inefficient weapon 20% is sufficient (called weapon(s)-usable); some argue that even less is sufficient, but then the critical mass for unmoderated fast neutrons rapidly increases, reaching infinity at 6%235U.[2] For criticality experiments, enrichment of uranium to over 97% has been accomplished.[3]

source and

Uranium used in nuclear weapons is enriched to approx. 93% U-235, while uranium used as fuel in commercial nuclear power plants typically is enriched to 3 - 5% U-235. Uranium enriched to more than 20% U-235 is called Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) and can only be used in nuclear weapons and in research reactors.

source just sayin, little more detail.

I predict that if Iran goes nuclear, that the Saudis will be right behind them.

It will end up being just like Pakistan and India.

At some point there is going to a be a major war in the Middle East with the Arabs, Persians, and Turks all fighting each other for control of the region. Imagine World War I with nuclear weapons and you'll have an idea.