When Riyadh and Islamabad Pledged the Sword Together!

Noureen Akhtar

Saudi Arabia and Pakistan’s new Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement (SMDA), signed in Riyadh on 17 September 2025, formalizes decades of close security cooperation with a clear pledge: aggression against one will be treated as aggression against both. The agreement, concluded during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s state visit to the Kingdom, marks a shift from ad hoc coordination to a treaty-level commitment. Official readouts from both governments emphasize the clause of mutual defense and the broadening of scope, while international reporting has confirmed the timing, setting, and intent.

The Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement pledges that an attack on one will be treated as an attack on both.

The SMDA rests on three key dynamics. First, Saudi Arabia is reinforcing its security environment by deepening cooperation with a longstanding Muslim partner. In a region where traditional security arrangements are evolving, Riyadh is signaling that reliance on a diverse set of allies enhances resilience. Second, Pakistan brings not only symbolic solidarity but also proven military experience. Its officer corps has trained generations of Saudi personnel, while joint exercises like the Al-Samsam series have already established habits of interoperability. This continuity lends credibility to the new pledge. Third, the agreement highlights the importance of regional self-help: states working together to preserve stability rather than waiting for external actors to define outcomes.

For Pakistan, the SMDA represents more than defense solidarity. It is a consolidation of ties with a vital economic patron, one whose investment and support have historically mattered in times of fiscal difficulty. By upgrading security cooperation to a treaty framework, Islamabad strengthens its regional standing and projects reliability as a partner. The pact opens doors for expanded defense-industrial cooperation, intelligence-sharing, and training programs, all of which contribute to both deterrence and capacity-building. At a time when Pakistan seeks to navigate financial pressures and complex geopolitics, this agreement is a diplomatic and strategic asset.

For Riyadh, the accord fits within Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s broader strategy of diversifying partnerships and reducing single-point dependencies. The Kingdom’s outreach to Pakistan underscores an effort to build depth with trusted allies in the Islamic world. Pakistan’s large, experienced army and the cultural affinity between the two societies make Islamabad a natural partner. Beyond deterrence, the agreement also showcases Saudi Arabia’s evolving role as a leader willing to forge cooperative frameworks within the region, balancing defense, diplomacy, and development.

It strengthens defense, training, and intelligence cooperation, elevating ties from ad hoc coordination to treaty-backed commitments.

The practical effectiveness of the SMDA will depend on follow-through. To make the “attack on one is an attack on both” clause meaningful, the two states will need to develop mechanisms for consultation, define clear thresholds of response, and invest in joint planning. Regular exercises, interoperability in communication systems, and coordination in air and missile defense will be necessary to ensure credibility. If these steps are institutionalized, the SMDA could reduce risks of miscalculation by clarifying red lines and strengthening deterrence.

At the same time, both capitals will need to manage regional perceptions carefully. The agreement should not be framed as directed against any specific neighbor. Engagement with India will remain important for Riyadh, given its growing economic ties with New Delhi, while Pakistan will continue to balance relations with Iran and China. By presenting the SMDA as a stabilizing compact rather than a confrontational one, both parties can reassure their wider audiences that this is about mutual protection, not regional polarization.

The broader significance of the agreement lies in its symbolism. It reflects a maturing of Pakistan–Saudi ties, moving beyond episodic cooperation into structured, treaty-backed security coordination. It demonstrates that states in South and West Asia can take greater responsibility for their collective security futures, signaling a measure of regional self-reliance. For the international community, the SMDA can be read as a stabilizing measure, an opportunity to encourage standards of professionalism, deconfliction, and cooperative security, rather than as a zero-sum move.

Success depends on clarity, interoperability, and careful diplomacy to reassure neighbors and avoid regional polarization.

If implemented with discipline, clarity, and balance, the SMDA could become more than another headline. It can be a framework that modestly strengthens deterrence, builds interoperability, and reassures both societies that their long-standing friendship has entered a new, institutional phase. Riyadh and Islamabad have now pledged the sword together; what matters most is how steadily they hold it.

The Author is a PhD Scholar and has worked on various public policy issues as a Policy Consultant. Currently, she is the editor of Stratheia and works for Islamabad Policy Research Institution (IPRI) as a Non-Resident Policy Research Consultant. Her work has been published in local and International publications. She can be reached at https://www.linkedin.com/in/noureen-akhtar-188502253/  and akhtarnoureen26@gmail.com. She Tweets (X) @NoureenAkhtar16