- Pakistan deployed fighter jets to Saudi Arabia under a defence pact amid US-Iran peace talks in Islamabad
- The 2025 Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement obligates Pakistan to defend Saudi Arabia if requested
- The pact lacks a clear clause requiring Saudi Arabia to defend Pakistan in return
As Pakistan works to broker a peace deal between the United States and Iran, its defence pact with Saudi Arabia is threatening to drag Islamabad into the very conflict it is trying to defuse. Pakistan has deployed its fighter jets to Saudi Arabia in its first visible military move under the Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA) between the two countries.
While the aircraft -- a mix of fighter and support jets -- landed at King Abdulaziz Air Base in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province on Saturday, Islamabad was hosting US and Iranian delegations for truce talks aimed at ending weeks of regional fighting.
The Secret Pact
The talks collapsed over the weekend, but both sides are reportedly considering returning to Islamabad before the 2-week ceasefire ends on April 21. However, if the talks bear no fruit again, Islamabad-- which enjoys good ties with both Washington and Tehran-- may be forced into the war to oblige its defence pact with Riyadh.
The details of the secret agreement between Islamabad and Riyadh have never been made public or even reviewed by Pakistan's parliament. However, Drop Site News reported the new pact leaves Islamabad explicitly obligated to send military forces to defend Saudi Arabia if requested, with clear language outlining that responsibility.
By contrast, there might be no equally clear clause requiring Saudi Arabia to defend Pakistan in return, the report claimed.
ALSO READ: Opinion | How US-Iran Talks Have Exposed Pakistan To 3 Big Risks
What Documents Revealed
According to Drop Site News, the latest version of the pact was signed in 2025. It binds Pakistan to supporting Saudi armed forces against any threat to its sovereignty or security, deploying military assets upon request and expanding cooperation beyond training into operational defence support.
"The second party [Pakistan] is obligated to send its forces to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia upon a request of the first party, to support the armed forces of the first party in dealing with any threat that affects its security, safety, sovereignty, territorial integrity and interests," the amendment stated.
"A protocol will be signed between both parties and attached to this agreement to clarify the details of such arrangements."
ALSO READ: Analysis: Islamic NATO Or Europe - Is Gulf Rethinking Its Options After Trump's 'Betrayal'?
How Pact Changed Over The Years
The defence partnership between Riyadh and Islamabad is not new. But it has evolved quietly and significantly over the years.
Documents accessed by Drop Site News showed that both nations signed the first confidential defence agreement in 1982. The military cooperation agreement was expanded to include training and logistics ties in 2005.
Between 2021 and 2024, amendments were introduced to direct military defence obligations. This culminated in the Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA), signed in 2025.
According to the Drop Site report, in August 2021, a summary of a new amendment to the agreement was sent to then-prime minister Imran Khan. The amendment has clauses which effectively commit Islamabad to engage in the physical defence of Riyadh, if requested.
The report said that the proposal sat on Imran Khan's desk for a year over ambiguity in wording on whether the threat to be combatted at the Saudi government's request was foreign or domestic. Quoting former officials, the Drop Site reported that Khan was apprehensive about signing an agreement that could obligate the Pakistani military to participate in a foreign war.
The summary of the amendments was finally signed in February 2024 by the military-backed caretaker government after Khan was removed from power. However, the language of the new amendment was reportedly hotly debated inside the military establishment after it was signed.
"The amendment was one-sided, some worried, and would obligate Pakistan to defend Saudi Arabia without imposing a reciprocal obligation on Riyadh. Assessments also noted that the amendment did not clearly differentiate between conventional and nuclear forces. The documents show that the Pakistani military was only interested in committing conventional forces to any deal with Saudi Arabia, and sought to explicitly exclude nuclear capability from the obligation," it said.
Debates were also regarding the fact that any threats to Saudi sovereignty and interests might not remain confined within the kingdom's territory and could require military action outside the country, where Pakistan might not want to
"Many of these concerns were eventually addressed in the 2025 SMDA, signed months before the Iran war," the report said, adding that the document was not part of the leaked set that Drop Site had access to.
As per the joint Saudi-Pakistan press release announcing the SMDA, "The agreement states that any aggression against either country shall be considered an aggression against both."
ALSO READ: Pak's 'Global Power' Act Is Fooling No One - Least Of All Its Gulf 'Creditors'
Pressure On Pakistan
Saudi Arabia has provided financial support to Pakistan's unstable economy over the years. The Kingdom currently holds more than $5 billion in deposits at the State Bank of Pakistan, which are rolled over periodically.
Islamabad also maintains good ties with both Iran and the United States, and entering the direct conflict risks rupturing this balance.
Moreover, any military alignment against Iran could trigger backlash. Pakistan has a large Shia population, and public sentiment is also seen as sympathetic to Iran in the current conflict.
