Pakistan says pact open to other Arab nations, Saudi under its N-umbrella

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has said that its strategic "mutual defence agreement" with Saudi Arabia was open to other Arab nations to join and for the first time revealed that Riyadh would be under Islamabad's nuclear umbrella.

Pakistan defence minister Khawaja Asif, when asked whether the country's nuclear assets were also up for use under the agreement, told Geo TV in an interview: "What we have, our capabilities, will absolutely be available under this pact." Asif said there was no clause in the deal that ruled out the entry of any other nation, or that Pakistan could not sign a similar agreement with anyone else. The move is seen by analysts as a signal to Israel, in the wake of the country's attack targeting Hamas in Qatar last week, which sparked new concerns among Gulf Arab nations about their safety. "I think it is a fundamental right of the countries and people here, particularly the Muslim population, to together defend their region, countries and nations," Asif said. agencies