DUBAI: Pakistan’s defense minister said Friday that his nation’s nuclear program “will be made available” to Saudi Arabia if needed under the countries’ new defense pact.
Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif’s comments to Geo TV were the first specific acknowledgment that Pakistan was placing Saudi Arabia under the umbrella of its nuclear arms.
The two countries signed a defense deal Wednesday declaring that an attack on one nation would be an attack on both.
The move is seen by some as a signal to Israel, long believed to be the Middle East’s only nuclear-armed nation.
It comes after Israel’s attack targeting Hamas leaders in Qatar last week killed six people and sparked new concerns among Gulf Arab nations about their safety amid the Israel-Hamas war.