Pakistan vows to defend ally Saudi 'to any extent'

Pakistan's military spokesman said his country will "go to any extent" to defend ally Saudi Arabia, as the kingdom comes under increased attack from Yemen's Houthi forces.

Houthi forces this week reported fresh Saudi airstrikes, as Riyadh accused the group of launching a "cowardly" attack targeting Islam's holy city of Mecca, prompting a wave of outrage from around the Muslim world.

In an interview Thursday with Arab News, Pakistan's military spokesman Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said his country would back Saudi Arabia "both diplomatically and physically".

"We will go to any extent for the security of (the two holy sanctuaries) and the kingdom of Saudi Arabia," he said.

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye last month signed the so-called Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, committing the three countries to mutual defence in the event of any of them being attacked.

The pact came against a backdrop of war between the United States and Iran and attacks in the region from Tehran-backed Houthi forces.

Asked about the Houthi attacks, a Turkish diplomat told AFP that Ankara had not received "any official request from Saudi Arabia".

"We have officially declared our support for Saudi Arabia. Having said that, everyone in this region has enough experience to know that bombing people... does not necessarily bring any results," he said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"Most of the time, talks between intelligence agencies are more fruitful," added the diplomat.

"It's not just about Saudi Arabia and their allies sending fighter jets to Yemen."

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye were working to set the necessary mechanisms that would underpin the Mecca Agreement, which would take time.

"Institutionalisation is one issue we are now working on. But all three countries' armies, navies and air forces need to be able to operate together. And that doesn't happen overnight," the Turkish diplomat said.