'Bait and switch': Van Hollen accuses Trump of reversing Saudi nuclear deal terms

WASHINGTON, DC: Senator Chris Van Hollen accused President Donald Trump on Sunday, July 26, of pulling a "bait and switch" after the administration appeared to change the terms of its newly announced Saudi nuclear agreement.

The Maryland Democrat argued the shift came less than a day after the deal was unveiled. He said the reversal undermined confidence in US commitments and ignored Saudi Arabia's longstanding position on relations with Israel.

Van Hollen calls deal a bait and switch

Appearing on ABC's ‘This Week’ with George Stephanopoulos, Van Hollen said the administration changed the terms after initially reaching an agreement with Saudi Arabia.

"As you well know, the Saudis have been very clear that they will normalize relations with Israel when we're on a clear path toward developing a Palestinian state, living side-by-side — security for both Palestinians and Israelis," he told host Martha Raddatz.

"That has been the Saudi position. And so, what the Trump administration did was a bait and switch scheme," he said.

The criticism followed Wednesday's announcement that the United States and Saudi Arabia had reached a nuclear cooperation agreement allowing the kingdom to enrich uranium, a provision that could open the door to developing a nuclear weapon.

Less than 24 hours later, Trump made Saudi recognition of Israel a condition of the agreement.

Van Hollen described the rapid shift as "a complete whiplash."

"I mean, it just shows you cannot rely on the United States," he said. "You certainly can't count on the Trump administration. They had signed a deal."

White House ties deal to Abraham Accords

Saudi Arabia has long maintained that normalizing ties with Israel depends on a pathway toward establishing a Palestinian state, a position that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected.

After Trump's announcement, Netanyahu's office welcomed the new condition.

"The joint American and Israeli military action against the genocidal regime in Tehran and Israel's crushing of Iran's terror axis have created the possibility to expand the circle of peace," the statement said.

It added, "As President Trump has said, Saudi Arabia's joining of the Abraham Accords would be an historic leap forward for peace in the Middle East. Peace through Strength."

Trump defends new condition

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the administration's approach when asked why the Abraham Accords requirement was not included in the Energy Department's original announcement.

She said Trump "is always the final dealmaker" and added that if Saudi Arabia declined to join the accords, "the deal is off."

Trump says Iran threat had disappeared

Trump has repeatedly described the 2020 Abraham Accords, which established diplomatic ties between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, as one of the signature foreign policy achievements of his first term.

Speaking from the Oval Office on Friday during an event on nuclear power with Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Trump suggested Saudi Arabia had previously stayed out of the accords because it feared an attack from Iran, a threat he said had since been removed.

"It's a two-way street, and we think it's very important for the future of the Middle East," Trump said.