Asif’s pledge on Saudi defence
Pakistan will defend Saudi Arabia with full force if the kingdom faces aggression, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said, placing Riyadh’s security on the same footing as Islamabad’s. Speaking in a television interview, he stressed that the duty to stand with Saudi Arabia goes beyond formal paperwork and reflects a deeper bilateral bond.
“It is incumbent upon us that we defend Saudi Arabia,” Asif said, adding: “We will defend Saudi Arabia with full force.” He also stated: “Just as the defence of Pakistan is paramount, the defence of Saudi Arabia is equally paramount for us.”
Tehran meeting and regional talks
The remarks came as Asif discussed a meeting in Tehran attended by Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, alongside senior officials from Iran, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye. The four countries agreed to keep talking to strengthen regional cooperation amid tensions involving the Houthis.
Asked whether the gathering related to Houthi attacks or a wider conflict involving the United States and Israel, Asif said his reading was that the initiative was more closely tied to developments concerning Saudi Arabia, though possible US action was likely on the agenda as well. “America, definitely, that would also have been discussed — it’s not as if it wasn’t discussed,” he said.
He pointed to the presence of senior Saudi and Turkish officials in Tehran as a sign of how seriously the engagement was taken, and credited efforts by the field marshal with helping make the initiative possible. Asif said he believed some progress had been made and hoped peace could be advanced through Iran’s efforts and the involvement of other countries.
Security pact and attacks on Saudi sites
On whether Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are bound by a security arrangement, Asif referred to an agreement under which, he said, three countries had put in writing a commitment to respond jointly when a threat covered by the pact arises. “God willing, now that three countries are involved, by agreement also, we will defend each other’s territory against any foreign aggression,” he said.
He described the repeated targeting of Riyadh airport and attempts to attack the Haramain Sharifain as “very unfortunate.” Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran and other countries within the security framework, he added, had been working to ease tensions. “My view is that we have arrived at some sort of conclusion that can fulfil the requirements to stop this war,” he said, while remaining “slightly guarded” about the outcome and hoping for clearer signals from Iran and the other parties.
Asif also said diplomatic steps by Pakistan’s leadership were “yielding results,” and that there was a chance of progress on US-related tensions toward a more peaceful situation. For readers asking whether Pakistan will defend Saudi Arabia in practice, his answer was unambiguous: Islamabad treats the kingdom’s defence as a shared priority and says it will act with full force under that commitment.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif ne kaha hai ke Pakistan Saudi Arabia ka difaa poori taaqat se karega. Unke mutabiq Saudi Arabia ki hifazat Pakistan ke liye utni hi zaroori hai jitni apne mulk ki. Tehran mein Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran aur Türkiye ke darmiyan baat cheet ho rahi hai taake region mein tension kam ho. Aam logon ke liye yeh ishara hai ke Islamabad Riyadh ke saath mazboot security rishta rakhta hai.
