Pakistan confirmed on Friday that its forces had been deployed in Saudi Arabia, saying that their mission was exclusively defensive as the conflict with Iran-backed Houthi forces escalated. The publicly stated Pakistani position defines the nature of its forces’ presence in the kingdom as defensive, amid security developments linked to the conflict with the Houthis.
The joint defence agreement between Pakistan, Türkiye and Saudi Arabia
The confirmation of the deployment comes in the context of the defence relations linking Islamabad, Riyadh and Ankara, after Pakistan signed a joint defence agreement with Türkiye and Saudi Arabia. Pakistan linked the presence of its forces in the kingdom to a defensive mission, stressing that their role was limited to this aspect under the current security circumstances.
The Pakistani announcement coincided with a development concerning aviation safety in Saudi airspace, as a European agency expanded the scope of its warning regarding the kingdom’s airspace. The agency linked the decision to expand the warning to Houthi attacks, indicating that the repercussions of the security escalation had extended to warnings related to air traffic and airspace.
The two developments—the deployment of Pakistani forces and the European air warning—are part of the same context, linked to the escalating conflict with the Houthis. While Islamabad stressed that the mission of its forces inside Saudi Arabia was exclusively defensive, the European agency took an additional step by expanding the scope of its warning concerning Saudi airspace because of the attacks.
Pakistan’s confirmation that its forces are in the kingdom reflects one aspect of the defence cooperation established under the agreement signed with Saudi Arabia and Türkiye.
The emphasis that their mission is limited to defence also comes as security concerns grow, prompting the European agency to amend the scope of its air warning against the backdrop of attacks attributed to Iran-backed Houthis.
