Islamabad, Sep 13 (PTI) Pakistan on Sunday expressed “complete solidarity” with Saudi Arabia after recent Houthi attacks on the kingdom, and warned that the strikes threaten regional security and global energy supplies.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif conveyed the support to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a phone call, according to Pakistan’s Prime Minister’s Office.
The call came a day after Saudi Arabia temporarily shut its 1,200-km East-West oil pipeline following a drone attack launched from Iraq. The pipeline is a key alternative route for Saudi oil exports because it allows crude to reach the Red Sea without passing through the Strait of Hormuz, where shipping has been severely disrupted by the wider conflict involving the US and Iran since February.
Saudi authorities said a projectile fired by the Houthis injured two people and damaged several buildings, including a mosque, on Saturday – part of a broader Houthi campaign against Saudi Arabia that has included missile and drone strikes on cities and energy facilities.
Sharif condemned what he described as Houthi attacks on Saudi civilian and economic infrastructure. He said the strikes could further disrupt the global economy and energy supplies.
“While expressing complete solidarity with the Saudi leadership as well as the brotherly people of Saudi Arabia, the Prime Minister stated that the recent Houthi actions threatened regional peace and security and could further disrupt the global economy and energy supplies,” the Pakistan PMO statement said.
Sharif also said he, Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar would continue efforts to reduce tensions and restore peace in West Asia.
The Saudi crown prince appreciated Islamabad’s efforts for peace and stability in the region, said the statement, adding that the two leaders agreed to remain in close contact and expressed hope of meeting soon.
The attacks have revived focus on a mutual-defence pact signed by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye on August 7, under which an attack on any of them would effectively be considered an attack on all three.
Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on 9 September that there should be no ambiguity over the commitment of the arrangement and an unprovoked attack on a member, or the spillover of the conflict in Yemen into Saudi Arabia, could activate the pact’s collective-defence provisions.
His comments followed Houthi missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia that injured at least 73 civilians last week. PTI SH SKS ABD SKS SKS
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