Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said the Makkah defence pact between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Iran could become operational if Houthi attacks on Yemen spill over into Saudi Arabia.
His remarks came after Yemen’s Houthi rebels launched attacks on Saudi oil installations on Tuesday, leaving 73 people injured.
Signed on August 7, the defence pact seeks to strengthen collective deterrence and provides that aggression against one signatory would be treated as aggression against all three member states.
Speaking on Geo News programme Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath on Tuesday night, Asif was asked whether the recent Houthi attacks could trigger the pact.
He said there was no ambiguity over the agreement, which required member states to respond if one of them came under aggression.
“This is a joint defence pact,” Asif said, adding that any unprovoked aggression or spillover of the Yemen conflict into Saudi Arabia would make the agreement operational.
“We are bound by the terms and conditions of this pact and we will honour them in case there is a need,” he said.
Asked whether Pakistan and Saudi Arabia had been in contact following the attacks, Asif said he was not aware of any such engagement. He nevertheless reiterated that Pakistan was obligated under the pact to respond in the event of aggression against a member state.
The defence minister stressed that the agreement was defensive rather than aggressive in nature, saying that if any member state came under attack, all three countries would respond.
He added that even if the agreement had been bilateral rather than trilateral, Pakistan would have responded to aggression against Saudi Arabia.
Asif expressed hope that the situation would soon come under control and that the Houthis would avoid expanding their internal conflict beyond Yemen.
He described the Houthis as non-state actors and said the Yemeni government had also responded to their attacks. While acknowledging widespread sympathy for Iran across the Muslim world, he criticised what he described as the exploitation of bilateral disputes by non-state actors.
Asif said the defence pact could serve as a deterrent and that the three countries did not necessarily need to respond to aggression with aggression, but had established their respective defence capabilities.
Recalling the conflict in Yemen, which began in 2014, Asif said Pakistan had supported Saudi Arabia during the earlier crisis as well. He said the longstanding relationship between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, along with the importance of protecting the kingdom’s sovereignty, meant Islamabad would stand by Riyadh during difficult times.
On the deadlock in negotiations between the United States and Iran, Asif expressed hope that diplomatic channels remained open.
“I will not abandon hope that the process has ended or that all doors have closed,” he said, describing the situation as a stalemate but noting that indirect engagement was continuing.
He said Pakistan faced a difficult balancing act because of its close relations with countries on both sides of the conflict.
Asif also accused Israel of seeking to prolong the conflict and weaken Gulf countries, arguing that the financial burden of the war was being borne largely from abroad.
He said civilians in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon were bearing the consequences of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s policies.
The minister also pointed to what he described as a shift in public opinion in Europe, North America, New Zealand and Latin America, saying more people were opposing what he called the influence of the Zionist lobby.
On Tuesday, the Houthis claimed responsibility for attacks on four cities in southern Saudi Arabia, saying they had fired dozens of ballistic missiles.
The attacks targeted Abha, Khamis Mushait, Jazan and Najran, with the rebels claiming strikes on Abha International Airport, King Khalid air base and facilities belonging to Saudi state oil company Aramco.
The attacks reportedly wounded more than 70 people and set oil installations ablaze.
Saudi Arabia responded with strikes on targets in Taiz and Marib provinces, as well as the Jubah district east of Sanaa. The Saudi Foreign Ministry said Riyadh would take all necessary measures to protect its sovereignty.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the Houthi attacks and expressed Pakistan’s “unwavering solidarity” with Saudi Arabia, saying the strikes threatened civilian lives as well as regional peace and security.
The Foreign Office also condemned the attacks, describing them as “reprehensible”.
