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Pakistan condemned Iran's strikes connected Saudi Arabia and voiced steadfast solidarity with Riyadh. Despite a 2025 defence pact, analysts expect Islamabad to prosecute diplomacy and logistical enactment alternatively than nonstop subject involvement, owed to its home and determination constraints. The statement centres connected accepted practice and explicitly excludes atomic guarantees.
Iran's caller retaliatory drone and rocket strikes connected Saudi Arabia and cardinal lipid refinery sites amid associated US-Israel attacks and Ayatollah Khamenei's killing, has sparked a beardown absorption from Pakistan, which has condemned Tehran's "dangerous escalation" and pledged "full solidarity" with Riyadh and Gulf states.As the concern continues to escalate with Iran continuing its rocket and drone barrage, questions are being raised whether Islamabad's absorption volition spell beyond verbal admonishment fixed its 2025 Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement with Riyadh .
Saudi cities, Aramaco lipid refinery attacked
- Riyadh: Capital deed by intercepted missiles, prompting aerial raid sirens and authorities condemnation of "blatant Iranian aggression" connected the kingdom's heartland.
- Dammam/Eastern Province: Broader barrages struck this concern hub adjacent lipid fields, with debris and nonstop impacts reported.
- Ras Tanura Refinery: Primary target, 1 of the world's largest with 550,000 barrels/day capableness connected the Persian Gulf. A drone onslaught caused a tiny occurrence and achromatic smoke, starring to impermanent shutdown for harm assessment; nary injuries, blaze contained quickly.
The strikes were portion of a wider Iranian question hitting UAE (Abu Dhabi, Dubai), Qatar (Doha), Bahrain (Manama), and Oman (Duqm port), spiking lipid prices 10-15%. Saudi Patriots intercepted astir threats.
Pakistan's reaction
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said helium had spoken with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to convey Islamabad's presumption connected the escalating situation.Posting connected X, Sharif said, "This evening, I spoke with my beloved brother, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to explicit Pakistan's beardown condemnation of the unsafe determination escalation that followed the Israeli onslaught connected Iran and the consequent strikes successful the Gulf region."
He added that Pakistan stands "in afloat solidarity with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the sisterly Gulf states during this hard time".Sharif further said that Pakistan is afloat prepared to play a constructive relation for bid and expressed anticipation that the beatified period of Ramadan would bring tranquillity and stableness to the region.But volition Islamabad dispatch jets, troops, oregon nukes?
What the defence pact says
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia formalised the Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA) successful September 2025, a pact treating aggression against 1 arsenic an onslaught connected both.Core provisions
- Collective defence clause: Any onslaught connected either federation triggers communal response, rooted successful decades of subject training, associated exercises, and Pakistan's enactment for Saudi security.
- Enhanced cooperation: Covers associated mechanisms, quality sharing, defence manufacture collaboration (e.g., drones, cybersecurity), and imaginable co-production of equipment, without explicit atomic guarantees contempt speculation.
- No atomic umbrella: Pakistan's doctrine remains India-focused; the pact institutionalizes accepted ties alternatively than extending deterrence.
Will Pakistan measurement up?
The pact's corporate defence clause treats aggression against 1 arsenic an onslaught connected both, gathering connected decades of subject ties. Yet, halfway provisions emphasise accepted practice — associated exercises, quality sharing, drones — without atomic commitments. PM Sharif's telephone with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pledged "full solidarity" and bid mediation, not jets oregon troops. Experts accidental dispatching forces could resistance Pakistan into a multi-front war, straining its system and exposing vulnerabilities amid home woes."The Saudi-Pakistan defence pact is much of a governmental and strategical concern alternatively than a classical defence pact akin to NATO. Pakistan has publically condemned the Iranian onslaught connected the Saudis and expressed solidarity and thing beyond that. Pakistan successful nary mode volition get into immoderate benignant of subject engagement arsenic it has capable connected its manus some externally with Afghanistan and internally with TTP and BLA. This erstwhile again exposes the treble standards which Pakistani enactment has been exhibiting from clip to time," said Major General Rajan Kochar (Retd).Experts adhd that Islamabad volition apt instrumentality to diplomacy, logistics aid, oregon overflight rights — bolstering Riyadh without boots connected ground.
