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Today’s top stories

The Trump administration has signed a nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia that would allow American companies to operate commercial nuclear power plants in the country. American companies will have priority access to supply nuclear reactors and fuel to the Saudi nuclear energy program, according to an administration memo about the agreement seen by NPR. Saudi Arabia cannot reprocess American nuclear material for weapons per the agreement. But the memo lacks the “gold standard” provisions that would prevent the country from using American-built plants to enrich uranium or other nuclear fuel supplied by other countries. The country is also not required to adopt terms that would lead to greater oversight from the International Atomic Energy Agency.

• 🎧 NPR’s Emily Feng tells Up First that the announcement sent shockwaves through the Middle East because Saudi Arabia has sought nuclear cooperation with the U.S. for more than a decade. Concerns over the country’s human rights abuses and potential ambitions for nuclear weapons previously stalled this collaboration. The agreement strengthens ties between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia at a time when Gulf states have faced heavy repercussions for aligning with the U.S. during the war in Iran. Israeli former defense and foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman has criticized this agreement, saying it could lead to a nuclear arms race in the region. Feng says Israel is widely believed to have nuclear weapons, but has never confirmed it. She adds that the agreement also raises worries in Israel about a growing rift with the U.S.

House Republicans passed several significant pieces of legislation yesterday ahead of a more than month-long recess. Lawmakers approved $1.1 trillion for the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), with six Democrats joining Republicans in supporting the effort. Republicans also separately advanced a $95 billion budget blueprint that would set them up for a reconciliation bill. The framework allocates more than $70 billion for the war in Iran, $12 billion for farmers and funds to implement the SAVE America Act, President Trump’s election overhaul bill. The House also advanced a bill that could ban lawmakers from acquiring new individual stocks while in office, and voted to extend government funding past the midterms to Dec. 4. These bills are now headed to the Senate, which will be in session for one more week.

• 🎧 In order for the bill to pass in the Senate, it will l need to be rewritten to secure the 60 votes, which means getting Democratic support, NPR’s Eric McDaniel says. Democrats oppose the $1.1 trillion Pentagon budget. For the government funding extension bill, they want concessions on Trump’s immigration enforcement. Senate Leader John Thune is considering a backup plan for government funding if he cannot reach a deal with Senate Democrats to keep the government open past the midterm elections, McDaniel says.