Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., led a group of Republicans on Wednesday in urging President Trump to suspend all negotiations to build a nuclear power plant in Saudi Arabia as a response to the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
“The ongoing revelations about the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as well as certain Saudi actions related to Yemen and Lebanon, have raised further serious concerns about the transparency, accountability, and judgment of current decisionmakers in Saudi Arabia,” Rubio and four other senators wrote in a letter to Trump.
“We therefore request that you suspend any related negotiations for a U.S-Saudi civil nuclear agreement for the foreseeable future,” the letter added.
Khashoggi was murdered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, earlier this month. The Saudi government has admitted that individuals under its control were complicit in his death.
Rubio was joined on the letter by Republican Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky, Todd Young of Indiana, Cory Gardner of Colorado, and Dean Heller of Nevada.
Energy Secretary Rick Perry and others in Trump’s Cabinet have made a forging a deal with Saudi Arabia to build an American-made reactor in the kingdom a top goal.
Nevertheless, some in Congress have warned that proliferation risks could result from starting a civil nuclear power program with the Saudis.
Perry has responded to those concerns by arguing that it is better for the U.S. to lead on civil nuclear development in Saudi Arabia than allowing a rival, such as Russia, to do so.
Meanwhile, experts at a two-day conference on U.S-Saudi relations in Washington said the letter means the Chinese will likely get the deal.
Paul Sullivan, energy fellow with the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations, the group hosting the summit, said the U.S. deal has been barely treading above water in recent months. Rubio’s letter is a sign that either China or South Korea will likely get the reactor deal, he said.
“The Chinese are toasting us in infrastructure worldwide,” Sullivan explained, saying the U.S. is handing China the lead on energy.
Sullivan warned Saudi leaders that China is not “doing this out of the goodness of their heart,” but will want something in return.
