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On Thursday morning, majority of the world's nations woke up to one of the most surprising developments that has shaken not just the Middle East but entire South Asia.

 

It was Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signing the joint defence pact after more than two years of consultations. Both nations termed the pact as historic.

 

This comes a week after Israel carried out airstrikes on the Qatari capital, Doha, to target what they said was aimed at Hamas leadership.

 

However, the attacks triggered massive international backlash from the Muslim nations and other countries that had traditionally remained staunch supporters of Israel.

 

The joint defence pact suggests that Saudi Arabia would not rely on Western nations for their defence, like Qatar did, and face isolation when the support is needed the most.

 

The pact has raised concerns among many nations, as some Saudi officials have said they are likely to get direct access to Pakistani nuclear weapons in times of war if needed.

 

Well, the development was also acknowledged by Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who hailed the “brotherly relations” between the two sides.

 

Direct access to Pakistani nuclear weapons

 

The pact seems normal from the outside, as usually happens between two sides, like Russia and North Korea, where both nations pledge to support each other in times of war and emergency, extending to different spheres of trade, military, and defence cooperation.

But the Saudi-Pakistan pact is somewhat different and interesting, as Saudi Arabia is likely to get direct access to Pakistan's nuclear arsenal if needed in times of war, sending a direct message to Israel.

 

Israel is particularly concerned as they understand the consequences when nukes get involved in the battle.

 

India and Pakistan, during their face-off from May 7 to 10, were caught in a vice-versa border action followed by one of the biggest air battles of the century.

 

World bodies quickly swung into action to limit and prevent the fighting between the two nations before things could have gone out of control.

 

Deterrence against Israel

 

The pact is supposedly aimed at limiting Israel's hostile actions in the region, which are posing a threat to the entire Middle East. Tel Aviv has bombed multiple countries in the past two years, including Syria, Yemen, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, and now Qatar.

 

Saudi Arabia’s move is primarily linked to the ongoing Israeli actions in Gaza and to pressure Tel Aviv to limit its dangerous escalatory moves.

 

Riyadh cannot allow Israel to roam free to bomb the nation around it and threaten the region to carry out strikes wherever they want in the Gulf.

 

These repeated actions have made Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman (MBS) angry, according to regional experts, as MBS is now pushing for the two-state solution.

 

Additionally, Saudi Arabia has threatened to reconsider its ties with the United States amid its relentless and blind support of Israel.

 

Long-standing partnership

 

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are traditionally aligned with each other, as Pakistan has trained more than 8,500 Saudi Arabian troops since 1967, and looks after two of the holiest sites, Makkah and Medina.

 

In turn, Saudi Arabia has invested billions of dollars into Pakistan to stabilise its economy, which has been in shambles for the past decade. Pakistan has taken multiple loans from Saudi Arabia and regional partners like China and the World Bank to reform its economy.

 

Additionally, Saudi Arabia has constructed several projects and religious sites, including the Famous Shah Faisal Mosque.

 

Besides Pakistan, nuclear weapons development was allegedly funded and supported by Saudi Arabian ruler Shah Faisal, who was one of the staunch advocates of an independent Palestinian state.

 

During the Yom Kippur War, when Israel was almost on the verge of facing defeat, America sent billions of dollars’ worth of weapons aid to Israel, which turned the tide against the Arabs.

 

Saudi funding

 

It was during Shah Faisal's reign and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's government that Pakistan started investing in nuclear weapons with the help of Saudi backing and American aid.

 

Interestingly, while America was fighting the Soviet Union in Afghanistan, it allowed Pakistan to carry on with its nuclear research and enrichment of Uranium.

 

There are reports that the US-CIA and Mossad knew about the clandestine operations taking place inside Pakistan.

 

However, due to the need for cooperation in Afghanistan, it is believed that the CIA turned a blind eye to the nuclear research, giving Pakistan and Saudi Arabia a chance to acquire the first-ever nuclear bomb, which would later be celebrated as an Islamic bomb across the Muslim nations.

 

Faisal was hated by the West for crippling the US oil exports, dealing a severe blow to the American economy in the early 70s, and supporting Israel's war against the Arabs.

 

Also read: Pak-Saudi defence deal springs out of US unreliability

 

He funnelled a lot of money into Pakistan so that a potent and reliable deterrence could be built primarily against Israel.

 

However, he was shot by his cousin’s son during a meeting, who had come from the US to take revenge for his brother that was killed in a shootout at a Saudi television studio for disrupting and attempting to murder the personnel working at the station.

 

Though Saudi Arabia never acknowledged funding the weapons programme, Pakistani high-ranking officials and nuclear scientists have often confirmed the claims.

 

India’s concern

 

Besides Israel, the next most concerned nation about this massive development is India, as Islamabad and New Delhi are bitter and sworn enemies of each other. The two nations have fought several wars in the past.

 

Plus, both nations have often threatened each other with escalatory military confrontations. As of 2025, bilateral relations between the two nations have worsened further after Operation Sindoor.

 

Besides, there are apprehensions that the two nations could once again engage in military confrontations over the Indus Water Treaty dispute. This has been at least confirmed by the Pakistani establishment multiple times since May 10.

 

India's concerns are well understood, given the fact that Riyadh possesses a massive Western military arsenal, and if it ends up in the Pakistani army’s hands, that could complicate New Delhi's entire military doctrine. India would be forced to adopt and acquire defence capabilities that might deal a blow to its rising GDP.

 

Saudi Arabia’s assurance

 

Saudi Arabia, on Thursday, revealed that the alliance has no role in the context of India and Pakistan, and the pact is only meant for regional cooperation and the evolving regional situation in the Middle East.

 

One of the Saudi officials also addressed the concerns, saying, “Our relationship with India is stronger than ever before.”

 

Further, New Delhi and Riyadh are trade partners and enjoy good bilateral relations; our cooperation with India will only increase in the coming days, he said.

 

New Delhi’s stance

 

There are no permanent friends and no permanent enemies, but permanent interests in the dynamics of global geopolitics. India must explore the intricacies of the joint defence pact between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia and also reassess its position accordingly, while Saudi Arabia must also openly discuss the implications of the pact in the context of India and Pakistan.

 

By Waseem Ahmad Ganie