Royal Saudi Strategic Missile Force
Military unit
Follow Royal Saudi Strategic Missile Force on Notably News to receive short updates to your email — rarely!
| January 2023 | Saudi Arabian Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman announced plans to develop a domestic nuclear fuel cycle, including uranium production, low enriched uranium enrichment, and nuclear fuel manufacturing for national use and potential export. |
| 2021 | CNN reported satellite images indicating Saudi Arabia was manufacturing solid fueled missiles with Chinese assistance. |
| September 17 2020 | The Guardian reports Saudi Arabia possesses uranium ore reserves capable of producing 90,000 tonnes of uranium, based on findings from the Beijing Research Institute of Uranium Geology and China National Nuclear Corporation. |
| May 2020 | Saudi Arabia begins construction of its first research reactor at the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology. |
| March 15 2020 | Satellite images reveal the cylindrical reactor vessel at King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology was visible through roof beams before being concealed by a roof. |
| January 2020 | The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Middle East District contracted AECOM and Tetra Tech to provide architectural and engineering services for the Saudi Missile Program. |
| March 2019 | The Trump administration approved Part 810 authorizations, allowing 6 U.S. companies to conduct preliminary work on nuclear power projects in Saudi Arabia. The authorization provides access to nuclear secrets through U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry, though it does not permit access to uranium processing equipment. |
| May 2018 | Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed reports that Saudi Arabia owns uranium materials in its desert and has adopted a plan to extract uranium by 2030, with uncertainty about the country's current nuclear weapon capabilities. |
| March 2018 | Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia publicly stated that if Iran builds a nuclear weapon, Saudi Arabia will 'follow suit as soon as possible', signaling potential nuclear weapon ambitions and creating diplomatic tension. |
| June 2016 | Nuclear technology company IP3 International was formed to facilitate nuclear technology transfer from the United States to Saudi Arabia. |
| May 2015 | Saudi defense officials publicly dismissed a Sunday Times report suggesting Saudi Arabia had made a 'strategic decision' to acquire nuclear weapons from Pakistan, characterizing the claim as mere speculation amid tensions with Iran's nuclear program. |
| 2014 | Saudi Arabia publicly displayed its strategic missile arsenal for the first time, showcasing the DF-3 missiles. |
| January 2014 | Newsweek revealed details of the secret 2007 DF-21 missile purchase by Saudi Arabia. |
| 2013 | The existence of the Royal Saudi Strategic Missile Force was officially announced. |
| 2013 | Reports emerged suggesting Saudi Arabia was exploring nuclear capabilities, potentially in response to Iran's nuclear program, raising international concerns about nuclear proliferation in the Middle East. |
| 2013 | BBC reported that Saudi Arabia had funded nuclear weapons development in Pakistan, with sources indicating Saudi confidence in their ability to acquire nuclear weapons. |
| 2013 | Media reports first suggested that the Royal Saudi Strategic Missile Force was considering purchasing advanced DF-21 ballistic missiles from China. |
| October 2013 | Amos Yadlin, former head of Israeli military intelligence, stated at a conference in Sweden that Saudi Arabia would immediately seek nuclear weapons from Pakistan if Iran obtained a nuclear bomb. |
| July 2013 | New Royal Saudi Strategic Missile Force (RSSMF) headquarters and academy buildings were officially opened by Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz and RSSMF commander Lieutenant General Jarallah Alaluwayt. |
| 2012 | Saudi Arabia confirms it would launch its own nuclear weapons program immediately if Iran successfully develops nuclear weapons, including plans to purchase nuclear warheads and source uranium for weapons-grade material. |
| January 2012 | Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao signed a mutual cooperation deal on nuclear energy with King Abdullah during a visit to the Middle East, outlining plans for developing nuclear power infrastructure in Saudi Arabia. |
| 2011 | Prince Turki al-Faisal suggests Saudi Arabia might consider producing nuclear weapons if caught between Iran and Israel's atomic arsenals. |
This contents of the box above is based on material from the Wikipedia articles Royal Saudi Strategic Missile Force & Nuclear program of Saudi Arabia, which are released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.