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KARACHI: Pakistan’s recent defense pact with �������� can help Islamabad stabilize its economy via increased jobs, sharing of technology and exports to the Kingdom, defense and economic experts said on Thursday. 

Pakistan and �������� on Wednesday signed a “Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement” pledging that aggression against one country would be treated as an attack on both, a move that will enhance joint deterrence and strengthen decades of military and security cooperation. The accord comes at a time of extreme volatility in the Middle East, where prolonged conflicts have heightened fears of wider instability, reinforcing the urgency Gulf states place on stronger security and defense partnerships.

It also takes place as Pakistan looks to escape a prolonged macroeconomic crisis that forced it to secure loan packages from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). �������� has bailed Pakistan out of financial troubles over the years, extending loans to the South Asian country and providing it oil against deferred payments. 

Mushahid Hussain Syed, former chairperson of the Senate Standing Committee on Defense, noted that enhanced defense ties between the two allies could have positive implications for Pakistan’s economy. 

“Yes, both Muslim brotherly countries are leveraging their respective strengths in this historic pact: Pakistan’s military capability and ��������’s economic strength,” Syed told Arab News.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has attempted to increase Pakistan’s GDP and sought help from IMF loans to keep Pakistan’s fragile economy afloat. Pakistan, which exported goods and services worth $32 billion last fiscal year, holds an exhibition in Karachi every two years to increase its defense and military exports. 

The JF-17 Thunder, a multi-role fighter jet co-developed by Pakistan and China, is one such fighter jet that was showcased in the exhibition last year.

Syed said it was likely the Kingdom could buy the fighter jets from Pakistan. 

“�������� has close ties with China so JF-17 Thunder sales can also be on the agenda, given the triangular Pakistan-KSA-China partnership,” Syed said. 

Asked if Pakistan could expect some economic relief from the Kingdom in the form of deferred oil payments and loans going forward, Syed said it “should be expected.”

“KSA has helped out Pakistan economically in the past,” he said. 

Khurram Schehzad, adviser to Pakistan’s finance minister, did not respond to Arab News’ queries. 

’FERTILE LAND, LABOR AND REMITTANCES’

Khaqan Najeeb, former finance adviser to Pakistan’s finance ministry, said the pact had formalized decades of ties and opened space for deeper trade and investment between Pakistan and ��������. 

“For ��������, Pakistan offers fertile land, skilled labor and potential food security links,” Najeeb noted. “For Pakistan, Riyadh is its top remittance source and a critical investor,” he added. 

He said the defense agreement is in line with ��������’s Vision 2030 program and gives Pakistan a chance to stabilize its economy “through jobs, capital, and technology.” 

Asked if Pakistan was expected to receive an investment pledge from ��������, similar to the US which had secured a pledge of $600 million from the Kingdom earlier this year, Najeeb pointed out that Islamabad and Riyadh had signed agreements worth $2.8 billion in October 2024. 

The finance expert, however, warned that transforming those agreements into “real projects” was a challenge for Pakistan amid the country’s regulatory and fiscal strains. 

“Effective follow-throughs can move the relationship beyond short-term bailouts toward a durable, security-backed economic partnership,” Najeeb noted. 

PAKISTAN STOCKS RALLY

Buoyed by the defense pact, investor confidence surged in Pakistan’s stock market during trading on Thursday. Pakistan’s benchmark KSE-100 Index rose by over one percent and closed at a record 157,953 points, with analysts attributing the rally to Wednesday’s pact. 

“The market touched all-time high after Pak-Saudi pact which is likely to ease (Islamabad’s) financial burden as Pak-Saudi relations improve,” Ahsan Mehanti, CEO at Arif Habib Commodities, told Arab News.

He said investors were expecting Pakistan to receive economic support from �������� following the pact. 

Leading brokerage house Topline Securities agreed.

“The bulls stampeded across the trading floor today as the local bourse surged on the back of a landmark development— the signing of the Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement (SMDA) between �������� and Pakistan,” Topline Securities said in a statement. 

KARACHI: Thousands of Pakistani children marched through Karachi on Thursday to condemn Israel’s war in Gaza, demanding an end to what they called an “unbearable” toll on Palestinian children.

The rally, organized by the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) religious political party, drew school students from across the city to Shara-e-Quaideen. Waving placards and chanting slogans, they voiced solidarity with Gaza, where local health authorities say more than 20,000 minors have been killed since October 7, 2023.

According to Gaza’s health ministry, more than 65,000 people overall have died in the enclave since the war began, with thousands still trapped under rubble. Aid agencies including UNICEF and Save the Children say the toll on children represents one of the gravest humanitarian crises in decades.

“The children of Karachi have come out for Palestine, for the people of Palestine, for the children of Palestine, for their mothers, for their sisters, and for their rights,” said Hazib Uddin, a ninth-grade student. “So much oppression is happening in Palestine that it is unbearable.”

Another student, Mehdiya Iqbal, said she had joined to make her solidarity visible.

“The blood of the Palestinians is flowing. And no one is doing anything here. So, I have come here so that I can show my solidarity. Pakistan is with the Palestinians,” she said.

Others echoed similar emotions. 

“She was shot 67 times. The Israeli government deliberately shot the heads,” said one participant, referring to the killing of six-year-old Rajab Al-Hind. 

In November last year, the case of six-year-old Al-Hind, killed along with several relatives during Israeli strikes in Gaza, drew global attention after Palestinian doctors said her body had been riddled with dozens of bullets when their car was attacked. Human rights groups cited her death as emblematic of what they called indiscriminate targeting of children.

JI leaders said the presence of thousands of children underscored the urgency of the crisis. 
“You have gathered in such a large number at Shara-e-Quaideen and announced that Gaza children are not alone,” said Naeem Ur Rehman, JI’s Pakistan chief.

 “We know that these children are not alone. The children of Pakistan, the children of this city of Karachi, the children of this whole nation are with those children who are being targeted by the Israeli terrorism.”

Munem Zafar Khan, JI’s Karachi chief, called the situation a humanitarian disaster.

“The children of Gaza should be in classrooms, not cowering from bombs or starving under siege,” he said, adding that Pakistani students had rallied to highlight this contrast. 

“They are here for raising their voices in protest against the fact that while they attend school, Palestinian children are denied that basic right, forced to survive under bombardment and starvation.”

Other participants stressed global responsibility.
 
“The children of Europe have rights. Similarly, the children of Palestine have rights. So, the whole world should leave for Palestine,” said student Zaeem Uddin.

The demonstration, one of the largest child-led rallies in recent years, came as humanitarian agencies warned of worsening malnutrition and disease in Gaza. UNICEF has described the devastation facing Palestinian minors as a “stain on the world’s conscience.”