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India urges Saudi Arabia to consider 'sensitivities' over Pakistan defense pact
India issued a measured diplomatic response Friday to Saudi Arabia's new defense pact with
Pakistan, urging the kingdom to consider "mutual interests and sensitivities" amid concerns
the agreement could reshape Middle East security dynamics and potentially affect regional
stability.
The response came two days after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed the Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement on
Wednesday in Riyadh, with the pact declaring that "any aggression against either country shall
be considered an aggression against both".
"India and Saudi Arabia have a wide-ranging strategic partnership which has deepened
considerably in the last few years," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal
said during his weekly press briefing. "We expect that this strategic partnership will keep in
mind mutual interests and sensitivities."
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India says it expects Saudi Arabia to mind 'sensitivities' after pact with Pakistan
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Nuclear Dimensions Raise Stakes
The pact gained heightened attention Thursday when Pakistan's Defense Minister Khawaja
Mohammad Asif explicitly stated that his country's nuclear capabilities "will absolutely be
available" to Saudi Arabia under the agreement. This marked the first specific
acknowledgment that Pakistan was extending its nuclear umbrella to the Gulf kingdom, with
analysts viewing it as a signal to Israel, the region's only known nuclear power.
"What we have, our capabilities, will absolutely be available under this pact," Asif told Geo TV,
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clarifying that Pakistan remains a "responsible nuclear power" since its first tests in 1998.
Pakistan possesses approximately 170 nuclear warheads according to the Bulletin of Atomic
Scientists, with ballistic missiles capable of reaching Israel.
The timing of the agreement appears linked to Israel's September 9 airstrike on Hamas
leaders in Doha, Qatar, which killed six people and marked Israel's first known attack on a
Gulf Cooperation Council member. The unprecedented strike on Qatari soil heightened
security concerns across Gulf Arab states about U.S. reliability as a security guarantor.
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Balancing Act for India-Saudi Relations
India's diplomatic balancing act reflects its complex relationship with both nations. While
Pakistan remains India's historic rival - the countries fought three major wars and experienced
heavy fighting as recently as May 2025 - Saudi Arabia has become a crucial economic partner
for New Delhi.
Bilateral trade between India and Saudi Arabia reached approximately $42 billion in fiscal year
2024-25, with Saudi Arabia serving as India's fifth-largest trading partner and India ranking as
Saudi Arabia's second-largest trading partner. The relationship has deepened beyond energy,
with Saudi Arabia set to participate in Aero India 2025 and India's Munitions India signing a
$225 million defense export deal with the kingdom in 2024.
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Regional Security Implications
The Pakistan-Saudi agreement formalizes decades of military cooperation, with Pakistan
currently maintaining approximately 1,500-2,000 troops in Saudi Arabia for training and
advisory roles. The pact represents "the most significant upgrade to Pakistan-Saudi defense
relations in decades," according to analysts.
Indian officials said Thursday they were aware the pact had been under consideration and
would "study the implications of this development for our national security as well as for
regional and global stability". Pakistan's Foreign Ministry emphasized Friday that the
agreement is "purely defensive" and "not directed against any third country".
The agreement comes as Gulf Arab nations increasingly question U.S. security commitments
amid Israel's expanding military operations across the Middle East following Hamas's October
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7, 2023 attack. Defense Minister Asif indicated the "doors are not closed" for other Arab states
to potentially join the pact, though he stressed the arrangement aims to secure regional peace
rather than target any specific nation.
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