Pakistan Offers Saudi Arabia Nuclear Umbrella Under New Defence Pact

Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif has confirmed that the country’s nuclear capability “will be made available” to Saudi Arabia if required under the newly signed Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA). His remarks, made during an interview with Geo TV, mark the first official acknowledgment that Riyadh could fall under Pakistan’s nuclear umbrella. Signed in Riyadh on September 17 by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the pact declares that an attack on either country will be treated as an attack on both. Asif stressed that Pakistan’s nuclear deterrence, developed to counter India, would extend to Saudi Arabia as part of this security framework. “What we have, and the capabilities we possess, will be made available to Saudi Arabia according to this agreement,” he said. The announcement comes a week after Israel’s deadly strike in Doha heightened Gulf security concerns. Analysts view the development as a direct signal to Israel, long considered the Middle East’s only nuclear power. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia share decades of close military ties, with Riyadh historically providing financial support for Islamabad’s defence programs. Experts suggest the pact could open the door for other Muslim nations to join a broader collective security arrangement.