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Pakistan Pledges Full Defence Commitment to Saudi Arabia
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Pakistan Pledges Full Defence Commitment to Saudi Arabia
Lieutenant-General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, director-general of the Pakistani military’s media wing, told Saudi newspaper *Arab News* that Pakistan will defend Saudi Arabia “to any extent,” emphasizing the word “physically.” He said Pakistani forces are already deployed to protect the kingdom’s holy sites in Mecca and Medina and stand ready for further action if required by Saudi leadership. The statement comes as Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi rebels intensify attacks on Saudi territory, testing the recently signed defence agreements.
Defence Pacts and Regional Context
Saudi Arabia signed a Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement with Pakistan in September 2025, obligating both nations to treat aggression against either as an attack on both. Following that pact, Pakistan deployed fighter and support aircraft to King Abdulaziz Air Base in April 2026 after a Saudi-Iran confrontation. In the month preceding this pledge, Saudi Arabia and Turkey concluded a Mecca Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement, which Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan described as operating “like NATO’s collective defence clause.” Neither pact’s full operational details have been disclosed, and both Pakistan and Turkey have expressed a desire to remain mediators in the broader Middle-East conflicts.
Official Statements from Pakistan, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia
- Chaudhry’s pledge was reiterated by Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, who warned that “unprovoked aggression” would trigger the agreement, though he offered no specifics.
- Pakistan’s Foreign Office later said no military response was under discussion, adding that Islamabad would act “when time comes.”
- Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned a recent Houthi drone intercepted near Mecca, calling the incident a “flagrant violation.”
- Houthi leader Abdel-Malik al-Houthi denied targeting Mecca, labeling such claims a “heinous lie.”
Recent Houthi Attacks and On-the-Ground Impact
On Friday, Houthi forces reported that Saudi Arabia carried out about 37 air strikes across Yemen, claiming to have hit al-Jawf, Saada, Hajjah, Taiz and Lahj governorates. According to Houthi authorities, the strikes killed five people, three of them children. The group also announced plans to continue striking Saudi bases, specifically naming King Khalid Air Base and King Fahd Air Base. An overnight attack on King Fahd Air Base damaged an Italian fighter jet, a fact confirmed by Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto.
What May Follow
Pakistan’s Foreign Office indicated that a military response could be considered “when time comes,” leaving open the possibility of future Pakistani involvement under the defence pact. Turkish officials have not yet operationalised the Mecca pact, and both allies continue to stress diplomatic channels as a preferred path toward a negotiated, peaceful resolution.
Verbatim Quotes
- “I would like to underscore here the word ‘physically’,” — General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, director-general of the Pakistani military’s media wing — General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, director-general of the Pakistani military’s media wing