Will study implications: India on Pakistan-Saudi Arabia defence deal
NEW DELHI,SEP 18 : A day after Pakistan and Saudi Arabia inked a strategic defence pact, India on Thursday said it will study implications of the move for its national security as well as for regional and global stability.
The agreement states that “any aggression against either of the two countries shall be considered as an aggression against both,” according to a Pakistan-Saudi Arabia joint statement.
In a carefully crafted response, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said New Delhi remains committed to protecting India’s national interests and ensuring “comprehensive national security in all domains.”
The “Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement” was signed by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Abdulaziz Al Saud and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Sharif was on a visit to Saudi Arabia.
The sealing of the pact came over four months after a four-day military conflict between India and Pakistan.
“We have seen reports of the signing of a strategic mutual defence pact between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan,” Jaiswal said.
“The government was aware that this development, which formalises a long-standing arrangement between the two countries, had been under consideration,” he said.
Jaiswal said India will “study the implications of this development for our national security as well as for regional and global stability.”
“The government remains committed to protecting India’s national interests and ensuring comprehensive national security in all domains,” he said.
Jaiswal was responding to a media query on the issue.
-AFP
