Pakistan vows ‘strong response’ to any threat to Saudi

Pakistan vowed Thursday “strong response" to any threat against Saudi Arabia, which is leading a regional coalition against the Iran-backed Shiite militia in Yemen, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's office said.

Sharif chaired a "high-level meeting" in which he said Pakistan enjoyed close and brotherly relations with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Cooperation Council countries.

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Saudi Arabia and Gulf allies launched military operations including air strikes in Yemen on Thursday, Saudi officials said, to counter Iran-allied forces besieging the southern city of Aden, where the U.S.-supported Yemeni president had taken refuge.

"The meeting concluded that any threat to Saudi Arabia's territorial integrity would evoke a strong response from Pakistan," Sharif's office said.

Pakistan would send a delegation, including military officials, to Saudi Arabia on Friday, the statement said.

Pakistan was considering a request from Saudi Arabia for troops to send to Yemen, the foreign office said on Thursday.