Islamabad: As Pakistan’s influence grows in the Middle East, concerns are mounting in the United States over potential nuclear proliferation in an already volatile region, while Israel is increasingly viewing Islamabad as a tangible threat to its security, according to a report published on Friday.
On September 17, 2025, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a “strategic mutual defence” pact, pledging to support each other in case of external aggression. The agreement marks a major shift in the Middle East’s strategic balance, with Saudi Arabia — long considered a key US ally — no longer relying solely on Washington for security assurances, The Geopolitics reported.
Although few details of the pact have been disclosed, analysts believe the decision was influenced by the ongoing war in Gaza. “Both sides made the decision with a view to the conflict in Gaza, even before it concluded,” the report said.
The agreement, it added, could soon be tested as both Riyadh and Islamabad bring their respective regional tensions into its scope. More significantly, it raises fresh questions about the pact’s potential nuclear dimensions, amid speculation that Pakistan’s nuclear deterrent may now extend to parts of the Middle East — a development that has revived long-standing Western anxieties about nuclear proliferation.
Since the start of the Gaza war, Pakistan has taken a strong stance against Israel, vocally condemning the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) operations in Gaza and beyond. Islamabad has also called for the formation of an Arab-Islamic task force at the United Nations to confront Israel.
“For Islamabad, such an initiative aligns with its long-term goal of playing a greater role in the Middle East and the wider Islamic world,” the report observed. “The defence pact with Saudi Arabia could represent the first step toward building a broader Muslim-world security alliance.”
However, the report cautioned that the Saudi–Pakistani defence alliance, while potentially fostering new cooperation, also revives the nuclear question that has long unsettled the West and could now extend to the Middle East.
“Israel has repeatedly shown that it will act preemptively when confronted with perceived existential threats,” the report warned. “If Israel believes Pakistan’s nuclear umbrella now covers the Arabian Peninsula, it could respond decisively. The coming years will reveal whether this pact becomes a stabilising force or ignites a new phase of regional brinkmanship.”
