“We are entering into the final stages of efforts to bring the proposed agreement into force,” State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said.
The cooperation agreement was approved by US President Barack Obama in May 2009 and sent to Congress for a 90-day review period.
The cooperation agreement is potentially worth billions of dollars to General Electric Company and Westinghouse Electric Company, LLC.
Congress could have blocked the agreement by passing a resolution of disapproval before the end of the 90-day review period. In spite of concerns some lawmakers have raised about UAE’s relationship with Iran, there was no push in Senate or House of Representatives for a vote.
UAE has pledged not to enrich uranium or reprocess used nuclear fuel and to import all fuel for its nuclear reactors.
The cooperation agreement will go into force once the two nations have exchanged diplomatic notes verifying they have fulfilled all the necessary requirements.
“The next step is to talk to the government of the UAE to see what their own requirements are for us to enter into this formally,” Kelly said.
US industry official estimate that final legal move could be done in the next week to 10 days.
The National Association of Manufacturers and the US Chamber of Commerce hailed the nuclear agreement.
“This agreement will usher in closer commercial ties between the U.S. and the UAE, which is already America’s top export market in the Arab world,” said Danny Sebright, president of the US-UAE Business Council.
