Saudi Arabia is making bold moves on the world stage, redrawing the map of its alliances and security arrangements in ways that could dramatically reshape the Middle East and South Asia. In the fall of 2025, Riyadh and Islamabad signed a Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement (SMDA), a pact that has the potential to change how regional security and nuclear deterrence are managed—especially as the United States’ traditional influence appears to be waning. At the same time, Saudi Arabia is deepening economic and technological ties with both the United States and China, reflecting a new era of strategic flexibility and ambition for the Kingdom.
The SMDA between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan is more than just another defense agreement. According to Foreign Policy, the pact signals two seismic shifts: first, that Riyadh is seeking security guarantees beyond those provided by Washington, and second, that Pakistan may be extending its nuclear umbrella abroad for the first time. Although the full details of the SMDA remain under wraps, the agreement’s timing and scope have already sent ripples through diplomatic circles from New Delhi to Washington and beyond.
To understand the significance of this move, it helps to look back at the long, sometimes fraught relationship between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Their partnership dates back to Pakistan’s independence in 1947 and has always combined economic, military, and religious dimensions. Saudi Arabia has long provided financial support and oil, while Pakistan has offered military assistance and a steady supply of labor. The 1980s saw both countries cooperating against the Iranian Revolution and Soviet intervention in Afghanistan. Later, in the 1990-1991 Gulf crisis, Pakistan sent troops to defend Saudi Arabia—a move that sparked controversy at home but solidified their bond. When Pakistan tested nuclear weapons in 1998, Riyadh offered crucial political and financial backing.
Of course, the relationship hasn’t always been smooth. Pakistan’s refusal to back Saudi campaigns in Yemen and the 2017 blockade of Qatar strained ties, as did Islamabad’s efforts to strengthen relations with Iran and Turkey. Still, the partnership has endured, with Saudi bailouts in 2018 and ongoing Pakistani military training of Saudi forces underscoring its resilience.
The SMDA arrives at a moment of profound regional upheaval. The Abraham Accords—once seen as a potential foundation for broader peace—have lost momentum, especially with the ongoing Gaza war. Meanwhile, Israeli air strikes across Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and even Iran have underscored just how volatile the region has become. The September 2025 Israeli attack on Doha, a U.S.-aligned state, was a particularly stark reminder of the shifting sands. According to Foreign Policy, this event highlighted the vacuum Riyadh now seeks to fill through alternative alliances, as Washington’s willingness to act as the Gulf’s security guarantor has come into question.
In response, the U.S. has tried to reassure its Gulf allies. An executive order pledging to defend Qatar was announced, but as Foreign Policy points out, such orders can be easily reversed by future administrations. This uncertainty is part of what’s driving Saudi Arabia to diversify its security relationships. Notably, Riyadh’s new approach does not mean turning away from Washington. Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman’s landmark visit to Washington in December 2025—the first in over seven years—underscored the importance of the U.S.-Saudi relationship. The visit yielded a proposed F-35 fighter jet deal and saw Saudi Arabia become the fourth member of the Gulf Cooperation Council to receive Major Non-NATO Ally status, according to Time.
“Saudi Arabia is willing to further deepen cooperation with China in areas including oil and gas, new energy, artificial intelligence and high technology, to bring greater benefits to the peoples of both countries,” Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said, as quoted by China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and reported by the South China Morning Post. This pledge, made on December 15, 2025, highlights Riyadh’s determination to diversify its international partnerships—even as the U.S. continues to exert pressure over Saudi technology cooperation with Beijing.
Washington’s relationship with Riyadh has seen its own ups and downs. Under President Joe Biden, U.S.-Saudi ties cooled due to arms restrictions linked to human rights concerns and the Gaza war, reportedly stalling a bilateral defense treaty tied to Saudi-Israeli normalization. But with Donald Trump’s return to the White House in January 2025, the pendulum swung back. Trump has taken a more hawkish approach to the Middle East, including a June 2025 U.S. bombing of three nuclear sites in Iran, and has prioritized cultivating deep ties with Riyadh. His meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in December 2025 capped a dramatic U-turn in U.S.-Saudi relations, moving towards warmer and more durable ties.
Economic cooperation is also front and center. Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 aims to diversify its economy away from oil, and U.S. expertise in innovation, technology, and investment is seen as essential. A Saudi-U.S. investment forum focusing on artificial intelligence was scheduled for December 17, 2025, in Washington, according to Time. As businesses in both countries grow closer, disentangling the two economies will become increasingly difficult for any future American president.
Yet, the SMDA with Pakistan introduces new risks. By stating that the pact may involve “all military means,” Islamabad risks international scrutiny over the possibility of extending its nuclear deterrent abroad—a move that could spark fears of nuclear proliferation and provoke rival arms buildups. For Saudi Arabia, closer alignment with Pakistan could strain its $31 billion trade relationship with India, especially if New Delhi perceives the pact as a tilt toward Islamabad in the ongoing India-Pakistan rivalry. Riyadh’s assurances that the SMDA won’t jeopardize its economic ties with India show just how delicate the balancing act has become.
There’s also uncertainty about whether the SMDA could evolve into a broader “Islamic NATO”—a military alliance of Muslim-majority states. Neither Riyadh nor Islamabad has clarified whether other countries would be invited to join or how such an alliance would operate. This ambiguity leaves regional actors guessing about the pact’s true scope and intentions, raising concerns that it could deepen sectarian and geopolitical divisions instead of promoting collective defense.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s insistence that normalization with Israel requires a pathway to a Palestinian state remains a sticking point. The September 2025 Israeli attack on Qatar only deepened Riyadh’s concerns about regional instability, reinforcing the need for security diversification. As Time notes, “Saudi Arabia knows it has a lot of leverage and will not budge unless there is a significant Israeli concession.”
In the end, Saudi Arabia’s recent flurry of diplomacy and deal-making reflects a region—and a world—in flux. The Kingdom is hedging its bets, forging partnerships with Washington, Islamabad, and Beijing, and seeking to maximize its strategic flexibility in an era when old certainties are fading fast. Whether these moves will bring greater stability or new risks remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: the Middle East’s balance of power is being rewritten in real time.
