Overview

• Signed on September 17 in Riyadh, the Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement pledges that any aggression against one country will be treated as aggression against both.
• Asif says the accord is not a reaction to Israeli strikes in Qatar, though the episode may have sped up talks already underway for years.
• The minister underscores a long-standing Pakistani military presence in the kingdom, saying the pact gives structured form to decades of cooperation.
• Asif rejects claims that Pakistan is selling nuclear weapons or offering a confirmed nuclear umbrella, while declining to detail classified aspects of the pact.
• AFP reports no official confirmation of any nuclear provision as unnamed sources and experts offer conflicting interpretations of possible non-conventional elements.