Pakistan–Saudi Arabia relations

The bilateral relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan are close and friendly. As two of the world's leading Islamic countries, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have sought to develop extensive commercial, cultural, religious and strategic relations. A Muslim-majority state, Pakistan has sought to develop close bilateral ties with Saudi Arabia, the largest country on the Arabian peninsula and home to the two holiest cities of Islam, Mecca and Medina and the destination of Muslim pilgrims from across the world.

Development of bilateral relations

Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are leading members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Saudi Arabia was one of the strongest supporters of Pakistan during Pakistan's wars with India, especially opposing the creation of Bangladesh from Pakistan's eastern wing in 1971. While it had supported Pakistan's stance on the Kashmir conflict, it has since endorsed the Indo-Pakistani peace process. With Pakistan, it provided extensive financial and political support to the Taliban and the Afghan mujahideen fighting the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in the 1980s.^[1][2][3] During the 1990-1991 Persian Gulf War, Pakistan sent troops to protect the Islamic holy sites in Saudi Arabia, but strains developed when some Pakistani politicians and Gen. Mirza Aslam Beg, the then-chief of staff of the Pakistani army openly expressed support for Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq and its invasion of Kuwait.^[4] Along with the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan were the only states to recognise Taliban rule in Afghanistan. In May 1998, before Pakistan's Chagai-I nuclear tests, Saudi Arabia promised to supply 50,000 barrels per day of free oil to help Pakistan cope with likely economic sanctions in the aftermath.^[2]

Military cooperation

Pakistan maintains close military ties with Saudi Arabia, providing extensive support, arms and training for the Military of Saudi Arabia.^[2] Pilots of the Pakistan Air Force flew aircraft of the Royal Saudi Air Force to repel an incursion from South Yemen in 1969. In the 1970s and 1980s, approximately 15,000 Pakistani soldiers were stationed in the kingdom.^[2] Saudi Arabia has negotiated the purchase of Pakistani ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads.^[2] It is also speculated that Saudi Arabia secretly funded Pakistan's nuclear programme and seeks to purchase atomic weapons from Pakistan to enable it to counteract possible threats from arsenals of the weapons of mass destruction possessed by Iran, Iraq and Israel.^[5][6][7] Both nations have received high-level delegations of scientists, government and military experts seeking to study the development of a nuclear programme.^[5][8][2]

Cultural and commercial ties

Saudi Arabia has also provided extensive religious and educational aid to Pakistan, being a major contributor to the construction of mosques and madrassas (religious schools) across Pakistan, the Faisal Mosque (dedicated to King Faisal of Saudi Arabia) in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. The major Pakistani city of Lyallpur was also renamed Faisalabad in honour of King Faisal in 1977. Saudi Arabia remains a major destination for immigration amongst Pakistanis, the number of whom living in Saudi Arabia stands between 900,000 and 1 million (see Pakistanis in Saudi Arabia).^[9][10] Saudi Arabia was a major supporter of the "Islamisation" programme of the military ruler Gen. Zia-ul-Haq in the 1970s. In 2006, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia was awarded the Nishan-e-Pakistan, the highest civilian decoration of Pakistan.^[11]

Saudi Arabia is the largest source of petroleum for Pakistan.^[12] It also supplies extensive financial aid to Pakistan and remittance from Pakistani migrants to Saudi Arabia is also a major source of foreign currency.^[13] In recent years, both countries have exchanged high-level delegations and developed plans to expand bilateral cooperation in trade, education, real estate, tourism, information technology, communications and agriculture.^[10][14] Saudi Arabia is aiding the development of trade relations with Pakistan through the Gulf Cooperation Council, with which Pakistan is negotiating a free trade agreement; the volume of trade between Pakistan and GCC member states in 2006 stood at USD 11 billion.^[14][13]

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