Pakistani government spokesperson Musadik Malik has compared the newly signed Saudi-Pakistan defense pact to NATO, saying it reflects a long-standing commitment that has now been formalized in treaty form.

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“It’s kind of like many other defensive [pacts] and I think the best way of looking at it is to look at NATO,” he told Al Arabiya English in an exclusive interview on the Riyal Deal, presented by Tom Burges Watson. “It’s not an aggressive treaty. It doesn’t invite for attacking anyone but if any of the countries in the NATO framework are attacked, it would be deemed as if all of them have been attacked.”
Malik said the agreement codifies an understanding that has defined Saudi-Pakistani relations for decades.

“We’ve had this relationship, or tacit understanding, for several decades, or frankly, forever,” he said. “It’s just that now we have [formalized] it in the form of a treaty.”

Malik joined Al Arabiya English for the exclusive interview days after Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed a joint strategic defense agreement during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s visit to Riyadh.

Sharif met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and signed the Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement that reaffirms the deep ties between Islamabad and the Kingdom.

Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have enjoyed a close relationship for almost eight decades.

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Saudi Arabia, Pakistan sign strategic defense pact