Pak-Saudi Defense Pact: Closing of Ranks

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a defense pact officially dubbed as “strategic mutual defence agreement” (SMDA) at a time when both of them face military threats from their regional rivals. The two countries are now committed to defend each other against aggression.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the agreement with Saudi Arabia reflects the “shared commitment” of both nations to strengthen security and promote regional peace, while also pledging to “strengthen joint deterrence against any aggression”. “The agreement states that any aggression against either country shall be considered an aggression against both,” the ministry said.
While Pakistan faces a grave military threat from much larger India in South Asia, Saudi Arabia is facing a threat from Israel after latter’s air strike against a brotherly Gulf State of Qatar. This agreement means that now Saudi Arabia is committed to defend Pakistan in case it is attacked by India and Pakistan is committed to defend Saudi Arabia in case it is attacked by Israel.
It is pertinent to mention here that both the regional rivals of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan–Israel and India respectively are also in close military cooperation with Israel providing cutting edge military technology to India.
Through this agreement, Pakistan has for the first time since signing of SEATO and CENTO–American led defense pacts which Pakistan signed in 1950s–Pakistan has officially committed its military capability for the defense of a territory outside Pakistan. In case of SEATO and CENTO Pakistan committed itself to defense South East Asia countries and Middle Eastern countries in 1950s.
Over the years Pakistan land forces and air force have been deployed in Saudi Arabia for defense and security purposes at different points of time during the last 70 years.
Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed Treaty of Friendship in 1951 and through this agreement laid the foundation of a decades long relations of military, political and economic cooperation. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are considered very close with latter coming to the aid of former in the times of dire financial crises.
Pakistani armed forces have deployed to the kingdom several times. Pakistani military has also trained Saudi personnel both in the Gulf and in Pakistan. Pakistan military has trained more than 8,000 over the years. An agreement signed in 1982 further cemented this cooperation by ensuring the “deputation of Pakistan Armed Forces personnel and military training” in Saudi Arabia.
However the latest defense pact between the two countries has been signed in the context of dangerous security situation developing in Middle East. Israel is now directly threatening Gulf countries with most Doha like strikes if they don’t expel Hamas leadership from their countries. While Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries are in defense agreements with United States and latter still maintain the presence of more than 40000 military personnel in the region, mostly based on bases in Gulf countries.
The United States failed to provide security to these Gulf States in the face of military threat from Israel. US officials have been saying that Doha strike will not effect US-Israel relations.
In this context Saudi Arabia and Pakistan defense agreement is seen as a watershed event in the regional security and political situation, “His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister and His Excellency Mr. Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan signed the “Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement”. This agreement, which reflects the shared commitment of both nations to enhance their security and to achieving security and peace in the region and the world, aims to develop aspects of defense cooperation between the two countries and strengthen joint deterrence against any aggression. The agreement states that any aggression against either country shall be considered an aggression against both” reads a press release of Pakistani foreign office.
It is not clear what exactly Pakistani military could do in case of attack on Saudi Arabia or any other Gulf states from Israel. The geographical distance between Pakistan and Israel is almost 3000 kilometer which makes land engagement impossible.
However it is possible that elements of Pakistani air force and land forces would be deployed in Saudi Arabia in case of Israeli aggression. The details of Pak-Saudi Arabia defense agreement have not been made public, which makes it impossible to predict what kind of material shape Pak-Saudi defense cooperation would take.
Similar to Saudi Arabia, Pakistan is also facing a military threat from its regional rival India. India, however, is in close economic and trade cooperation with Saudi Arabia. India imports lots of oil from Saudi Arabia for use in its industrial processes.
Will Saudi Arabia be ready to sacrifice its economic and trade relations with India in case of future war between Pakistan and India? Difficult to predict. However in May 2025 Pak-India war, Saudi Arabia did come to aid of Pakistani government by launching a diplomatic initiative to prevent and diffuse military conflict in South Asia.
Military and international politics experts say that both Pakistan and Saudi Arabia would face a lots of difficulties in implementing their mutual defense pact in case of regional war either in South Asia or in Middle East. But the fact that their leadership have signed such an agreement which commit both the countries to each other defense in case of war indicates the dramatic changes in the geopolitical and Geo-strategic situation faced by the two countries in their respective regions. There is a danger of this defense pact being perceived as building of a political and military block based on religious affiliation
India-Pakistan’s rival in South Asia and Israel–Saudi Arabia’s rival in Middle East, are in a relation of close military cooperation and possible could enhance their cooperation because of Pak-Saudi Defense pact.