Saudi Arabia–Pakistan Ink Defence Pact: Attack on one to be seen as an attack on both

Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have signed a new “Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement”, under which any attack on one country will be treated as an attack on the other.

 

 

The agreement was signed in Riyadh on Wednesday during the visit of Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who was invited by Crown Prince and Saudi Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.

 

 

According to a joint statement issued after the visit, “building on the historic partnership extending for nearly eight decades between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and based on the bonds of brotherhood and Islamic solidarity, as well as shared strategic interests and close defence cooperation between the two countries, HRH the Crown Prince and the Pakistani prime minister signed a Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement.”

 

 

The statement further added, “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 defence 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.”

 

While reacting to the development, India on Thursday said it will closely study the agreement’s implications for India’s national security as well as regional and global stability.

 

 

In a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that New Delhi acknowledges the formalisation of what it described as a "long-standing arrangement" between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, while noting that it would closely examine its potential ramifications.