Pakistan has launched a diplomatic damage-control effort with Saudi Arabia after its recent position on military action against Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels raised questions about Islamabad's defence commitments to Riyadh. The development has complicated Pakistan's attempt to maintain relations with both Saudi Arabia and Iran while also facilitating backchannel efforts involving Washington and Tehran. The situation has gained added significance because Pakistan has defence commitments with Saudi Arabia that could require it to respond if the Kingdom comes under attack.

Over the weekend, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif spoke with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and reiterated Pakistan's strong condemnation of the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia. According to Pakistan's Prime Minister's Office, Sharif expressed complete solidarity with the Saudi leadership and people and warned that the attacks threatened regional security and global energy supplies. The outreach came after Islamabad appeared to soften its earlier position that its latest defence arrangement did not automatically require Pakistani military action against the Houthis.

The latest tensions follow a series of attacks affecting Saudi territory and energy infrastructure. Saudi authorities said a projectile fired by the Houthis injured two people and damaged several buildings, including a mosque. Riyadh had also temporarily shut its 1,200-km East-West oil pipeline after a drone attack launched from Iraq. The pipeline provides an alternative route for Saudi crude exports to the Red Sea, allowing shipments to avoid the Strait of Hormuz, where shipping has faced disruption amid the wider US-Iran conflict.

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The fighting has emerged as an important test for the mutual defence arrangement involving Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, signed last month. Under the agreement, an armed attack against any one of the three countries is to be regarded as an attack against all. Pakistan's suggestion that the arrangement did not automatically mean military action against the Houthis appears to have created uncertainty over how Islamabad would respond if Saudi Arabia faced further attacks from the Yemeni rebels.

Sharif's latest outreach sought to reinforce Pakistan's commitment to Saudi security while avoiding a direct escalation with Iran and its regional allies. The Pakistani prime minister also said he, Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar would continue efforts aimed at reducing tensions and restoring peace in the Middle East. The balancing act is particularly sensitive because Pakistani soldiers are reportedly deployed near Saudi Arabia's border with Yemen, potentially increasing Islamabad's direct exposure if the conflict widens.

Pakistan's economic and strategic interests further complicate its position. Defence cooperation with Gulf countries has become an important component of Islamabad's efforts to strengthen its economy, while such partnerships have also been accompanied by discussions over Gulf investment. At the same time, Pakistan depends on energy supplies moving through the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea, routes that could be disrupted by Iran or the Houthis. Islamabad therefore faces the difficult task of maintaining its defence partnership with Riyadh without allowing the confrontation to pull Pakistan directly into a broader regional war.

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