Saudi media hail strategic defense pact with nuclear-armed Pakistan

ISTANBUL

Saudi state media celebrated a strategic defense agreement signed with nuclear-armed Pakistan as a “deterrence umbrella” that allows both nations to use their full military capabilities without exception.

On Wednesday, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman signed the pact in Riyadh with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

According to a joint statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the agreement seeks to “enhance security, achieve peace in the region and the world, aim to develop aspects of defense cooperation between the two countries and strengthen joint deterrence against any aggression.”

“Any aggression against either country shall be considered an aggression against both,” the agreement says, without elaborating.

“Crown Prince and Pakistani Prime Minister sign strategic defense agreement,” headlined Okaz newspaper, saying that towers across Saudi cities were illuminated with Saudi and Pakistani flags.

Nuclear deterrence

Okaz published a column by writer Muteb Al Awad hailing the defense pact.

“A historic fortification of the Islamic front: Saudi air defense completed by Pakistani nuclear deterrence,” headlined the column.

The deal “ushers in a deeper and more cohesive phase in relations between the two nations,” Awad said, framing the agreement as a “redefinition of regional deterrence.”

He argued that Saudi Arabia’s economic strength makes it the guarantor of global energy stability.

Saudi Arabia’s “advanced military places it among the leading regional forces, and its custodianship of Islam’s holiest sites grants it spiritual legitimacy and leadership in the Muslim world,” the writer said.

He also said the kingdom’s Vision 2030 has accelerated military modernization through domestic defense industries and weapons development, positioning the country as “the first line of defense against threats to Gulf and Islamic security.”

The Saudi writer said Pakistan is a declared nuclear power with a missile arsenal and one of the largest armies in the Islamic world.

He said its geographic position on the Arabian Sea links the Gulf to South Asia and the Indian Ocean, while its large population and defense industry expertise bolster its role in any joint defense arrangement.

The pact, he said, creates “a bilateral collective security umbrella” covering operational planning, intelligence sharing, joint exercises, naval and air cooperation, and defense industry development.

He said the recognition that “any attack on one country is an attack on both” establishes a “solid deterrence umbrella capable of protecting the Gulf and the Islamic world.”

Military capabilities

Political analyst Moneef Ammash al-Harbi said the defense pact allows both Riyadh and Islamabad to use their full capabilities.

The agreement “allows both nations to use their military capabilities without exception for deterrence … and sends a message to regional and international parties,” he said in statements carried by Al-Arabiya television.

Retired Saudi Air Force Brig. Gen. Faisal al-Hamad told the channel the agreement “adopts the NATO principle that an attack on one is an attack on all.”

Pakistani newspapers also gave prominent coverage to the signed defense agreement. SPA said skyscrapers in Islamabad were lit with Saudi and Pakistani flags in celebration.

“Crown Prince discusses developments with Pakistani prime minister, signs strategic defense agreement,” headlined Al-Riyadh newspaper.

“Crown Prince and Shehbaz review partnership,” said Al-Madina daily. “Strategic defense agreement between the kingdom and Pakistan.”

The defense pact between the two countries was signed a week after an Israeli strike on the Qatari capital, killing five Hamas members and a Qatari officer.

The attack came even as Doha, together with Egypt and the US, was mediating indirect talks between Hamas and Israel for a ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal in Gaza, where more than 65,000 people have been killed since October 2023.