An Old Alliance, Formalised: Why India Is Watching Saudi-Pakistan Defence Pact Closely

Last Updated:September 18, 2025, 12:40 IST

The Saudi–Pakistan pact pledges joint deterrence, deeper defence collaboration, and a guarantee that any aggression against one will be treated as an attack on the other

India reacts to the Pakistan-Saudi Arabia defence pact against aggression (Photos: Social Media/PTI)

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA) in Riyadh on Wednesday, under which any attack on one will be considered an attack on both. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman formalised the pact at Al-Yamamah Palace, in the presence of Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir. For India, which maintains strong strategic and economic ties with Saudi Arabia even as it remains locked in a rivalry with Pakistan, the pact is a development that cannot be ignored.

India’s Response: Measured But Watchful

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) reacted with caution. Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the government was aware the pact had been under consideration for some time and noted that it “formalises a long-standing arrangement” between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

The statement added that India would study the implications of the agreement for national security, regional stability and global peace, while underscoring that the government remains committed to safeguarding its interests across all domains.

ALSO READ: ‘Committed To Protecting National Interests’: India On Pakistan-Saudi Arabia Defence Pact

Why India Is Watching Closely

India’s engagement with Saudi Arabia has deepened steadily over the past decade. As per NDTV, India is now the second-largest trading partner for Saudi Arabia and a vital energy supplier, while a large Indian diaspora lives and works in the Kingdom. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has visited Saudi Arabia three times and was awarded the King Abdulaziz Sash in 2016, its highest civilian honour.

In April this year, during PM Modi’s state visit, both sides jointly condemned the Pahalgam terror attack and reaffirmed that there can be no justification for terrorism or for supporting cross-border infrastructure for militancy.

Against this backdrop, Saudi Arabia’s decision to formalise its military relationship with Pakistan is closely tracked in Delhi. It does not mean Riyadh is turning away from India, but it underlines the Kingdom’s balancing act between two South Asian rivals.

Analysts have also weighed in on what the pact signals for India. Writing on X, South Asia specialist Michael Kugelman noted: “Pakistan has not only inked a new mutual defense pact, it inked it with a close ally that’s also a top partner of India’s. This pact would not deter India from attacking Pakistan. But with 3 key powers — China, Turkey & now KSA — fully on Pak’s side, Pak is in a very good place.”

His point underlines the distinction: India’s military calculus remains unaffected, but the optics give Pakistan a sense of expanded backing at a time when its domestic and economic situation is strained.

What The Pakistan-Saudi Defence Pact Says

The Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA) commits both countries to treat an attack on one as an attack on the other. The joint statement described it as a pledge to “develop aspects of defence cooperation” and “strengthen joint deterrence against any aggression.”

Officials in both capitals framed the deal as the institutionalisation of a relationship that has long existed in practice. Since the 1960s, Pakistani troops have been stationed in the Kingdom, training more than 8,200 Saudi personnel and guarding holy sites in Mecca and Medina during times of crisis, including the 1979 Grand Mosque incident. Riyadh, in turn, has been a provider of oil and financial support for Pakistan’s fragile economy. The pact now gives this decades-old, often informal arrangement a formal treaty-like cover.

A NATO-Style Promise, But Not NATO

The wording of the SMDA strongly resembles NATO’s Article 5, which commits all members of the alliance to treat an attack on one as an attack on all. The comparison is deliberate: such phrasing carries deterrent value. But the similarities end there.

NATO is a 32-member multilateral alliance with integrated military planning, joint exercises and collective structures that have evolved over decades. The Saudi–Pakistan pact is a bilateral political agreement, and its practical scope remains unclear. How either side might respond to an act of aggression will depend on circumstance, capability and politics, not on institutionalised guarantees.

Saudi Arabia’s Balancing Act

Saudi officials have stressed that the agreement is not a reaction to a single event. A senior Saudi official told Reuters it was the culmination of “years of discussions” between Riyadh and Islamabad. Even so, the signing came just days after Israel’s airstrike on Doha that killed senior Hamas leaders, inevitably fuelling debate about its regional signalling.

The same official acknowledged the need to balance ties with Pakistan’s rival, noting that Saudi Arabia’s relationship with India is “more robust than it has ever been” and would continue to grow. Asked whether the pact obliged Pakistan to provide a nuclear umbrella, the official described it as a “comprehensive defensive agreement that encompasses all military means.”

This combination of messages reflects Riyadh’s careful hedging: formalising hard-security assurances with Pakistan while simultaneously reassuring Delhi that its economic, political and counter-terror partnerships remain intact.

The Nuclear Question

Although the text of the agreement makes no mention of nuclear weapons, the shadow of Pakistan’s arsenal looms large over its interpretation. Pakistan is the only Muslim-majority state with nuclear weapons, and Saudi Arabia has long been linked to that programme, according to AP.

Retired Pakistani Brigadier General Feroz Hassan Khan, in his book Eating Grass: The Making of the Pakistani Bomb, wrote that Saudi Arabia provided “generous financial support” for Pakistan’s nuclear programme. A 2007 US diplomatic cable published by WikiLeaks recorded American diplomats reporting that their Pakistani counterparts had raised the idea of Riyadh pursuing a weapons programme alongside Islamabad.

According to AP, analysts, and, in at least one instance, Pakistani diplomats, have over the years suggested that Saudi Arabia could be included under Islamabad’s nuclear umbrella, particularly as tensions with Iran have grown. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has himself said that the Kingdom would pursue a nuclear weapon if Iran obtained one.

That history ensures that even a conventional defence pact invites nuclear speculation. Riyadh and Islamabad have offered no such confirmation, but the perception that Saudi Arabia now sits closer to a nuclear-armed partner is enough to alter the strategic calculations of India, Iran and Israel.

Why This Matters For India

India will continue to parse the agreement carefully. On one hand, it formalises what has existed for decades: Saudi–Pakistan defence cooperation. On the other, it comes at a time when India and Saudi Arabia have built unprecedented trust, from counter-terror alignment to large-scale investment partnerships.

That is why New Delhi’s reaction has been deliberately measured, acknowledging the pact while signalling that India will safeguard its national interests in all domains. The broader message is that Saudi Arabia’s engagement with Pakistan does not automatically translate into a setback for Delhi, so long as Riyadh continues to deepen its economic, political and security ties with India.

The Bottom Line

The Saudi–Pakistan defence pact is symbolically significant, borrowing NATO-style language of collective defence while leaving its operational meaning ambiguous. For Pakistan, it is a boost to prestige and deterrence optics at a difficult economic moment. For Saudi Arabia, it is about hedging in a turbulent region while keeping options open with all major partners.

For India, the prudent course is exactly the one it has chosen: study the implications, stay engaged with Riyadh, and safeguard its interests while recognising that the core of the India–Saudi partnership remains solid.

About the Author

Karishma Jain

Karishma Jain, Chief Sub Editor at News18.com, writes and edits opinion pieces on a variety of subjects, including Indian politics and policy, culture and the arts, technology and social change. Follow her @kar…Read More

Karishma Jain, Chief Sub Editor at News18.com, writes and edits opinion pieces on a variety of subjects, including Indian politics and policy, culture and the arts, technology and social change. Follow her @kar… Read More

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