Pakistan claims that if Saudi Arabia is attacked, it must “honour” the security agreement.

The Mecca Defence Alliance might be activated by any attack on Saudi Arabia, according to Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, who warned that an attack on one member would be considered an attack on all signatories.

His remarks coincided with Saudi Arabia shutting down a number of energy facilities in the south as the Houthi insurgents in Yemen, who are supported by Iran, reported new attacks on the country. The Houthi attacks coincided with Iran’s threat to take a more assertive stance against the United States. Recently, the Islamic Republic rearranged its armed forces in order to adopt what it referred to as a “offensive doctrine.”

“We’re bound by the terms and conditions of this pact and, God willing, we’ll honor this pact if there’s aggression. There should be no ambiguity about this,” Asif said in an interview with Geo News. The Houthis should recognize that their actions “could make this agreement operational,” he said.

Last month, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan signed a trilateral defence pact in Mecca. Asif reaffirmed that “we are bound to help or react according to the agreement,” but he did not know if Riyadh had made contact with Islamabad.

According to Asif, the agreement allows members to react collectively to an attack on one another and is defensive rather than attacking. He warned the Houthis that any attempt to drag Saudi Arabia deeper into the Yemeni conflict could violate the agreement.

“We are hoping the situation will die down,” he said. Asif stated that Islamabad has backed Saudi Arabia even before the deal was finalised. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have longstanding defence ties. He cited the 2014 crisis in Yemen, where the Houthis overthrew the internationally recognised government and took control of the capital before a coalition led by Saudi Arabia intervened.

Separately, Asif stated that despite what appeared to be a deadlock, he was still optimistic that attempts to achieve peace between the US and Iran may be successful. “I will not abandon hope,” he said, describing diplomacy as a “tight-rope walk” and the situation as slightly better than a stalemate.