JAKARTA: Pakistan’s military spokesman Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry has said the country will “go to any extent” to defend Saudi Arabia, reaffirming Islamabad’s commitment to stand with the Kingdom “physically and diplomatically” amid rising regional tensions.
“Pakistan fully stands with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, both diplomatically and physically,” Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry told Arab News.
“And I would like to underscore here the word physically … We will go to any extent,” he said.
EXCLUSIVE: Pakistan Army says its support for Saudi Arabia goes beyond diplomacy. “We will go to any extent,” Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry tells Arab News https://t.co/694ZY1zd6E pic.twitter.com/5wA7MfCsqU
— Arab News (@arabnews) September 17, 2026
The military spokesperson also reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to protecting Islam’s two holiest sites in Makkah and Madinah.
“There should be no doubt about that,” he said. “We will continue to defend the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia against any aggression.”
Unconditional Support
“Our commitment to Saudi security is unconditional,” Chaudhry said, adding that “it stems from an emotive, deep-rooted, historical and unbreakable bond” between the two countries’ peoples, militaries and political leaderships.
Earlier, Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on Thursday that Pakistan will stand by Saudi Arabia “practically and diplomatically” if the conflict involving Yemen’s Houthi rebels escalates.
In a post on X, Khawaja Asif reaffirmed Pakistan’s solidarity with Saudi Arabia following the attempted drone attack on Makkah, saying Islamabad would stand “shoulder to shoulder” with the kingdom in protecting its sovereignty and the sanctity of the holy sites.
Defence Commitment
“I condemn in the strongest possible terms the dastardly and heinous attempted drone attack on the Holy City of Mecca. This was not merely an attack on Saudi Arabia. It was an attack on the heart of Islam and on the sentiments of Muslims across the world, who revere Makkah as the holiest city,” Asif wrote on X.
“Targeting the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and the focal point of Hajj is a cowardly, terrorist act that crosses every red line. It will remain a black mark on the perpetrators,” he said and added that “Pakistan stands unwaveringly, shoulder to shoulder, with the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in defence of its sovereignty and territorial integrity, and in safeguarding the security and sanctity of the holy sites.”
“If the situation escalates, we will stand with Saudi Arabia, both practically and diplomatically,” Asif earlier said in an interview with Geo News.
Religious duty
Asif told Geo TV that Pakistan would fulfil its obligations under the Pakistan-Saudi-Türkiye defence agreement, signed on August 7.
He said the pact provided that an attack threatening the territorial integrity of one member would trigger obligations by the other two members to protect it.
“There is absolutely no ambiguity,” Asif said.
He added that Pakistan’s commitment to protecting Makkah and Madina went beyond formal agreements, describing the protection of the holy sites as a religious duty.
“There is no need to activate any agreement,” he said, referring to a situation in which the holy sites themselves came under attack.
Asif also discussed the wider conflict involving Israel, the United States and Iran, arguing that Israel’s calculations had not produced the results it expected.
He said the region needed a collective response to what he described as the continuing threat posed by Israel.
