FY2026 NDAA — incl. International Nuclear Energy Act of 2025
Enacted law- Law
- Enacted (FY2026 NDAA)
- Bill / vehicle
- S.1071; INEA standalone was S.1801 / H.R.3626
- Status
- Enacted law
- Date
- Signed Dec. 18, 2025
- Administration
- Trump II
- Topic
- Civil nuclear exports & international cooperation
- Sponsors
- INEA led by Sen. Jim Risch (R-ID) with Lee (R-UT), Coons (D-DE), Heinrich (D-NM)
What it does
The annual defense bill carried the International Nuclear Energy Act, which builds a U.S. strategy to export reactors and compete with Russia's Rosatom and China abroad. It creates a Nuclear Exports Working Group and a 10-year civil-nuclear trade strategy with export targets, directs renegotiation of expiring Section 123 cooperation agreements, and authorizes assistance (up to ~$15.5M/yr through 2030) to nations newly 'embarking' on nuclear power.
Why it matters
Recognizes that reactor exports are geopolitical: whoever sells a country its first reactor shapes its energy and security ties for 60–80 years. The U.S. had been ceding that ground to state-backed Russian and Chinese vendors.
Primary sources
Learn the underlying ideas
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