The United States and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday signed a “peaceful nuclear cooperation agreement” that officials touted as the basis for a decadeslong multibillion-dollar partnership advancing shared economic and strategic objectives.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright said he signed the deal with Saudi Minister of Energy Abdulaziz bin Salman and argued the agreement would advance U.S. and regional security, uphold high standards of nuclear safety, security, and nonproliferation, and strengthen Washington’s competitive edge in civil nuclear technology. The deal, which is now being transmitted to Congress for review, has already stoked fears in Israel that it could allow the enrichment of uranium to build nuclear weapons and trigger a nuclear arms race in the Middle East, as Israel is the only major power in the region believed to possess nuclear weapons.