India Faces Down New Security Calculus

The Saudi Arabia-Pakistan defense pact has a signaling effect on deterrence.

Pakistani Air Force cadets march at the mausoleum of founding father Muhammad Ali Jinnah to mark Defense Day in Karachi, Pakistan, on Sept. 6. October 9, 2025, 7:00 AM Comment icon View Comments ( )

The announcement of a comprehensive defense pact between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia last month represents more than another bilateral agreement in a complex regional security matrix.

The deal is framed as a response to mounting insecurity in the Gulf amid Israel’s unrestrained military posturing across Lebanon, Syria, and the broader Middle East. But beneath the surface, the implications of the new defense pact are more expansive. It alters Pakistan’s strategic stan

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