Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan said on Friday that Pakistan already had “substantial number” of forces and resources in Riyadh and it was now up to the Makkah Defence Alliance to assess the threat in Saudi Arabia and make decisions accordingly.
The FO spokesperson remarks came in response to a query about the “active support” being offered by Pakistan to Saudi Arabia under the Makkah Defence Alliance amid an escalating conflict between the kingdom and Yemen-based Houthis.
The Makkah Defence Alliance is a tripartite arrangement that includes Turkiye as well. It was signed on Aug 7 and and aims to strengthen collective deterrence and empower its signatory states to treat an attack against one of them as an attack against all of them.
Speaking during a weekly briefing, the FO spokesperson recalled that a joint statement by the three members of the alliance was “very clear in stating that the three countries are united in ensuring deterrence and safeguarding the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia”.
The three countries had decided to contribute and mobilise resources rapidly, he said, adding that Pakistan already had a “substantial number of forces, as well as resources, in Riyadh”.
“It is now up to the organisation to assess the threat perception and operate in accordance with its own mandate,” he said.
The spokesperson went on to say that providing further details on operational matters of the alliance, “including how the situation will be handled, would not be appropriate on my part. It would also be speculative on my part to suggest that certain countries could be involved”.
On the Houthis and escalation of the conflict, he said, “This is a militia that has been involved in such proxy activities and has contributed to regional instability. It has been actively fighting Yemeni forces for quite some time, and access to resources is possible these days. However, at this stage, I would not be able to provide you with specific names”.
Yemen’s civil war has rapidly emerged as the fiercest front in a wider regional conflagration triggered by the US and Israeli attack on Iran that started on February 28.
Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority said on Friday that three Saudi nationals were killed and several people were injured in two attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Thursday.
The strikes, which also injured several people, damaged a Saudia Airlines plane and sent smoke billowing over the airport, led many airlines to cancel flights to the Saudi capital days before it is due to host a major meeting of global oil chiefs.
Saudi airstrikes hit Houthi targets in the Yemeni capital Sanaa overnight, Houthi officials and affiliated media said, part of an intensifying air war against the Iran-allied group aimed at reversing its recent territorial gains, threats to international shipping, and attacks on the kingdom.
The Yemeni group says it is targeting the kingdom over its support for government forces in Yemen’s reignited civil war. Saudi Arabia says it is backing an offensive by Yemen’s UN-recognised government to take back territory from the Houthis.
Pakistan role, as part of the Makkah defence pact, has been a matter of discussion against this backdrop.
While Pakistan has expressed solidarity with Saudi Arabia, it has also maintained that the Makkah alliance is intended for collective deterrence and defensive in nature.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday condemned recent Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, reiterating Pakistan’s commitment to the Gulf state’s “sovereignty, territorial integrity and security” under the Makkah Defence Alliance.
A day ago, the Ministry of Information dismissed on Thursday a news report claiming that Pakistan Air Force aircraft were being used against the Yemen’s Houthis as “fake and fabricated”. Earlier this week, the ministry also termed a Reuters report claiming the deployment of 30,000 to 40,000 Pakistani troops in Saudi Arabia as “speculative”.
Nevertheless, on Monday, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye agreed to the deployment of military forces and capabilities rapidly in the kingdom during an emergency meeting of the Makkah Defence Alliance in Riyadh. Monday’s meeting under the alliance was held to address the security developments and threats facing Saudi Arabia.
A statement issued by the Foreign Office after the meeting said the member states had “decided to move immediately to the practical implementation of the collective defence commitments and to take the necessary measures to provide the agreed military forces and capabilities and ensure their rapid deployment in the kingdom, in accordance with the approved arrangements and the national legislation of the parties, thereby enhancing readiness, military integration, and the collective capacity to confront and counter threats”.
Separately, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, who was part of Pakistan’s delegation in the meeting, joined Geo News programme ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Saath’ via telephone the same day and said Pakistan and Turkiye, the defence minister replied that both nations had a “presence in theatre”, but only Saudi troops were involved in combat operations.
He also said on Thursday that no stipulation of the Makkah Defence Alliance barred the member states from getting “directly involved” in case of a threat to one of the members.
Moscow Format meeting
The FO spokesperson also addressed the reason for the lack of a joint statement issued after the Moscow Format meeting, saying that it was due to the Afghan Taliban delegation’s departure from its previous position regarding the language on terrorism.
He noted that Pakistan had participated constructively in the meeting and “clearly conveyed its concerns” about terrorism emanating from Afghan territory, underscoring that it posed a serious threat to neighbouring countries.
“As you are aware, these concerns were duly reflected in the joint statement issued at last year’s Moscow Format meeting,” Khan said. “However, this year, the Afghan Taliban delegation did not agree to retain the previously agreed language and departed from its earlier position.”
He added, “We believe that any joint statement that does not adequately reflect this legitimate security concern would not present a fair picture of the ground realities. For Pakistan, this is a substantive security issue, not merely a matter of wording.”
However, the spokesperson highlighted that “the absence of a joint statement should not overshadow the value of regional dialogue”. He added that Pakistan had sufficient time to hold consultations regarding future participation in the Moscow Format, as the next meeting was a year away.
“As I have already mentioned, that is part of our engagement on the issue, and possibly we might continue to participate in the future as well,” he said, although he ruled out making any definitive commitments as “premature”.
New map issued by India
Additionally, the FO rejected the issuance of a new political map by India in which parts of India-occupied Jammu and Kashmir were depicted as a part of Indian territorial jurisdiction, terming it an “act of cartographic aggression” and noting that it did not make India’s occupation legitimate.
“Pakistan categorically rejects India’s latest act of cartographic aggression,” Khan said while answering a question.
He added, “Any motivated and unilateral cartographic exercise is legally void and in clear violation of the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions. Such illegal actions cannot confer legitimacy on India’s occupation of large parts of Jammu and Kashmir.”
Noting that unilateral action by India could not alter the internationally-recognised disputed status of the region, he further said that these measures could not “prejudice the inalienable right of the Kashmiri people to self-determination”, which should be exercised via a free and impartial plebiscite under UN auspices.
“Instead of resorting to futile cartographic exercises, India must abide by international law, fulfill its obligations under the relevant UN Security Council resolutions, and allow the people of illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir to exercise their right to self-determination,” the spokesperson added.
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