Contours of the Saudi-Pak relationship

O n September 17, Pakistan signed a "Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement" (SMDA) with Saudi Arabia.

- SMRUTI S PATTANAIK

The agreement is a geo-strategic move, and after signing it, Islamabad has projected this as a major achievement in its brotherly relationship with Riyadh. Both countries have their own strategic interest, but it will bring economic dividends to the cash-strapped economy of Pakistan. Saudi Arabia has provided concessional financial aid and oil with deferred payment.

While Pakistan is noncommittal about this agreement, another regional development where the Taliban foreign minister is scheduled to visit Delhi will cast a shadow on Islamabad, projecting the agreement with Saudi Arabia and its relationship with the United States as a big diplomatic victory.

Pakistan has been emphasising the clause that reads "any aggression against either country shall be considered an act of aggression against both" to impress that Saudi Arabia would be on Pakistan's side when it faces aggression. Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Asif's suggestion that Pakistan will provide a nuclear umbrella to Saudi Arabia has been retracted. However, some have termed this agreement as Pakistan's return to the Middle East as a 'net security provider'. Details of this agreement are not yet known. Nevertheless, it provides Pakistan an opportunity to project power after the US recognised Pakistan's relevance to its geostrategic goals in Iran, Afghanistan and the broader Middle East region.

After the signing of the agreement, the economic component of the bilateral relationship is in the process of being operationalised. Pakistan has constituted an 18-member committee to negotiate the terms of economic engagement with Saudi Arabia. The committee will be co-chaired by Climate Change Minister Musadik Malik and the national coordinator for the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), Lieutenant General Sarfraz Ahmad.