Why Is Pakistan Silent Despite the Historic Makkah Defense Pact
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Mounting security concerns across the Middle East have brought the credibility of the tripartite Makkah Joint Defence Agreement (MJDA) under intense international scrutiny following relentless missile and suicide drone bombardments launched by Iran-backed Houthi rebels against key Saudi Arabian territories. Despite inked security guarantees signed on August 7, 2026, by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Islamabad has remained visibly passive on the ground. Touted as an Islamic equivalent to NATO's Article 5 collective defense architecture—where an attack on one signatory constitutes an act of war against all—the alliance faces mounting skepticism as Saudi air defenses independently engage incoming threats over urban centers without any activation of Pakistani military contingents stationed inside the kingdom.
Ballistic Incursions and NATO-Style Guarantees: Why Islamabad Hesitates
The gap between diplomatic declarations and military intervention has widened dramatically as southern Saudi Arabia faces sustained ballistic barrages:
Sustained Aerial Incursions: Over recent weeks, Houthi militants have escalated drone and missile strikes targeting Abha, Khamis Mushait, Jizan, Najran, and Taif, with hostile drones intercepted near the holy city of Makkah and failed long-range salvos launched toward the administrative capital, Riyadh.
The Paper Shield Dilemma: While the Makkah pact explicitly promised joint operational deterrence and mutual territorial defense, Pakistan has neither invoked the collective defense clause nor initiated kinetic counter-drone operations to support Saudi ground forces.
Geopolitical Balancing Act: Defense analysts observe that Islamabad is caught between its heavy financial dependence on Riyadh and an unwillingness to antagonize neighboring Iran by entering a direct shooting war against Tehran-aligned Houthi forces in Yemen.
Grounded Assets: Stationed JF-17 Jets, Troops, and Air Defense Batteries Remain Dormant
Pakistan’s operational hesitation is particularly glaring given that substantial Pakistani armed personnel and advanced weaponry are already physically deployed within Saudi borders under prior bilateral mutual defense pacts:
Massive Forward Presence: Under an existing Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement formalized at King Abdulaziz Air Base near the Persian Gulf, Pakistan maintains a brigade-level deployment of around 8,000 soldiers, a full operational squadron of PAC JF-17 Thunder multi-role fighters, two drone squadrons, and Chinese-built HQ-9 long-range surface-to-air missile systems.
Fully Funded by Riyadh: Despite the entire contingent’s operational costs, housing, equipment logistics, and per-soldier compensation being funded directly by the Saudi treasury, the deployed assets remain uncommitted even as hostile projectiles pass over Saudi airspace.
Paralysis in Multilateral Coalitions: Similar inertia surrounds other Riyadh-based alliances where Pakistan holds commanding sway, including the 43-nation Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition (IMCTC) headed by former Pakistani army chief General Raheel Sharif, as well as the Red Sea Multinational Maritime Defence Coalition.
Communiqués Without Action: High-Level Military Summits Yield No Ground Counter-Offensive
Efforts to project unity through senior-level diplomacy continue to falter against persistent battlefield realities:
The Riyadh Trilateral Review: On September 25, Turkish and Pakistani army chiefs, including Field Marshal Asim Munir, convened in Riyadh to review mutual defense obligations under the Makkah agreement, issuing joint communiqués reaffirming commitment to Saudi Arabia's territorial sovereignty.
Absence of Actionable Timelines: The diplomatic meetings produced promises of intelligence integration and joint defense capability roadmaps, yet conspicuously omitted binding operational deployment schedules or retaliatory rules of engagement.
Mockery on the Ground: In an ironic demonstration of regional volatility, Houthi rebels launched another salvo of ballistic missiles toward Khamis Mushait just hours after the top brass concluded their deliberations in Riyadh, forcing Saudi Patriot batteries to engage and destroy the incoming projectiles single-handedly.
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