Pakistan-Saudi deal: Muslim world on path to ‘new NATO’

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has said that the recently signed military agreement between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan could develop into a powerful military structure like the Western military alliance NATO in the future. He expressed this optimism in his speech in the Pakistani parliament on Friday (October 3).

Ishaq Dar said, "Our military agreement with Saudi Arabia is very important. Several Arab and Muslim countries have already expressed interest in signing a similar defense agreement with Pakistan. If this is implemented, then the 'new NATO' of the Muslim world can be formed. God willing, Pakistan will lead 57 Muslim countries."

He also mentioned that if this agreement had been in force during India's 'Operation Sindoor' attack last May and the subsequent four-day bloody conflict, then India's attack would have been part of a declaration of war not only against Pakistan but also against Saudi Arabia.

Incidentally, on September 17, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed a historic military agreement in the Saudi capital Riyadh. According to the agreement, an attack on either Saudi Arabia or Pakistan would be considered an attack on the other.

Analysts believe that this agreement between Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan will have a major impact on the geopolitics of the Middle East. As a result, Saudi Arabia has effectively come under the protection of Pakistan's nuclear umbrella. However, both countries have not yet officially announced whether nuclear weapons will be used if attacked.