On Saturday, as Pakistan was in the middle of mediating hard-won ceasefire talks between the U.S. and Iran,Saudi Arabia made a sudden revelation that appeared to undermine Pakistan’s status as a neutral host. In a statement posted on X, the Saudi Ministry of Defense announced “the arrival of a military force from the Islamic Republic of Pakistan at King Abdulaziz Air Base in the Eastern Sector,” adding that the force would include a contingent of military aircraft and would improve “operational readiness between the armed forces of the two countries.”
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Those deployments are the result of a defense pact signed last year between Riyadh and Islamabadthat has now been activated amid an ongoing regional war and numerous Iranian attacks against military and energy targets in Saudi Arabia.
Ceasefire talks collapsed over the weekend in Pakistan, with the American delegation leaving without an agreement. But Pakistan is far from out of the picture; secret documents obtained by Drop Site News reveal the extent to which Pakistan is committed by treaty to potentially become a participant in the war it was attempting to mediate.
The details of the Pakistan–Saudi Arabia defense agreement have never been made public or even reviewed by Pakistan’s parliament. They are being reported here for the first time based on an archive of classified documents about the pact obtained by Drop Site.
The risk that Pakistan may itself be pushed into the war is also important context for the zeal of Pakistan’s leaders to bring an end to the fighting. Pakistan enjoys good ties with both Iran and the U.S., and relies heavily on financial support from Saudi Arabia. Following news that the United Arab Emirates had recalled a loan from Pakistan last week, Saudi Arabia and Qatarsteppedup with $5 billion aimed at propping up Islamabad’s foreign reserves as it deals with fallout from the economic crisis caused by the war.
After weeks of intense fighting, Pakistan emerged as an unlikely mediator seeking to bring an end to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. Pakistan does not have an extensive history of mediating conflicts in the Middle East, and is mired in its own conflict in Afghanistan.
But Pakistan was extremely motivated to end the war. Early on, Pakistanattempted to brokeran arrangement under which Iran would refrain from attacking Saudi installations. On March 3, a few days into the war, PakistaniForeign Minister Ishaq Darreferenced the Saudi-Pakistan defense agreement and stated that he had communicated Pakistan’s position to Tehran.
“We have a defense pact with Saudi Arabia, and the whole world knows about it,” Dar said. “I told the Iranian leadership to take care of our pact with Saudi Arabia.”
Source: Global Research
