Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have signed a mutual defense agreement, pledging that an attack on either nation will be treated as an attack on both. The announcement came days after Israeli strikes on Qatar, marking the first formal defense pact declared by a Gulf Arab state in response to the widening regional conflict.
The agreement was signed in Riyadh on Wednesday by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Statements from both governments described the pact as an effort to strengthen defense cooperation and enhance deterrence in the face of external aggression. While neither side explicitly mentioned nuclear weapons, the accord underscores long-standing speculation about Saudi Arabia’s potential access to Pakistan’s nuclear umbrella.
The move reflects decades of security cooperation between the two countries. Pakistan has frequently deployed troops to Saudi Arabia, beginning in the 1960s when regional instability threatened the kingdom. Those ties deepened after the 1979 Iranian Revolution, as Riyadh sought to bolster its defenses against Tehran. Pakistan’s willingness to help guard Islamic holy sites in Mecca and Medina further cemented the partnership.
Saudi Arabia is widely believed to have provided financial assistance for Pakistan’s nuclear weapons program during its development. Former Pakistani officials have acknowledged that the kingdom played a role in supporting the effort, and U.S. diplomatic cables released in 2010 suggested that Pakistani diplomats had raised the possibility of nuclear cooperation with Riyadh. While no official arrangement has ever been confirmed, analysts have long noted that Saudi Arabia could seek protection under Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal if regional tensions escalated.
The timing of the pact appeared aimed at Israel, which is engaged in a sweeping military campaign across multiple fronts following Hamas’ attack on October 7, 2023. That offensive has extended into Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, the Palestinian territories, and most recently Qatar. Israel has not commented on the Saudi-Pakistani agreement, but the development signals a significant shift in regional security alignments.
The pact also comes as Saudi Arabia pursues its own nuclear ambitions. Riyadh has sought U.S. assistance for a civilian nuclear energy program, a proposal once tied to a potential diplomatic normalization deal with Israel before last year’s conflict derailed negotiations. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has previously said that if Iran acquires a nuclear weapon, the kingdom would feel compelled to follow. This latest agreement with Islamabad may be viewed by regional observers as part of that broader strategy.
Iran, meanwhile, has taken note of Saudi Arabia’s defense moves. Before the pact was announced, senior Iranian politician Ali Larijani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, visited Riyadh. The trip may have served as a channel for Saudi leaders to signal their intentions to Tehran, with which they restored relations in 2023 through a Chinese-brokered deal.
