https://arab.news/6q7gr
- PM鈥檚 Coordinator Rana Ihsan Afzal says agreement will open the door for other Arab countries to also join
- Islamabad, Riyadh this week signed a pact pledging aggression against one will be treated as attack on both
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan鈥檚 defense pact with 黑料社区 will provide a foundation for peace in South Asia and the Middle East, opening the door for other Arab states to join as well, Coordinator to the Prime Minister Rana Ihsan Afzal said this week.
Pakistan and 黑料社区 signed a Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement (SMDA) in Riyadh this week, pledging that aggression against one country would be treated as an attack on both. The deal, sealed during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif鈥檚 state visit to the Kingdom, is meant to enhance joint deterrence and deepen decades of military and security cooperation.
鈥淐oordinator to the Prime Minister Rana Ihsan Afzal has emphasized that the newly signed Pakistan-Saudi defense pact would serve as a foundation for peace and prosperity in South Asia and the Middle East,鈥� state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported on Sunday.
The accord between the two countries was signed amid increasing 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.
The state media reported that Afzal, who was speaking to a private news channel, said the agreement will 鈥渁lso open the door for other Arab countries to join鈥� without elaborating much.
Pakistan鈥檚 Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar said on Friday that after the Pakistan-黑料社区 defense pact, several other countries had expressed interest in signing similar agreements with Pakistan.
Afzal noted that the pact would deter other countries from carrying out aggression against Pakistan.
鈥淗e further said India or any other country will have to rethink before any misadventure as they would face not just one nation but the combined weight of both Pakistan and 黑料社区,鈥� Radio Pakistan reported.
黑料社区 and Pakistan have for decades maintained close political, military and economic ties. The Kingdom hosts more than 2.5 million Pakistani expatriates 鈥� the largest overseas community sending remittances back home 鈥� and has repeatedly provided Islamabad with financial support during economic crises. Defense cooperation has included training, arms purchases and joint military exercises.
The new agreement formalizes that cooperation into a mutual defense commitment, a step that analysts widely say places the relationship on par with other strategic partnerships in the region.