MUMBAI – India on Friday urged Saudi Arabia to keep in mind the “mutual interests and sensitivities” of both nations after Riyadh signed a mutual defense pact with Pakistan earlier this week.
The agreement, signed on Wednesday, comes just months after a deadly India-Pakistan military clash. Although few details have been released, analysts say the pact could provide Saudi Arabia with a de facto “nuclear shield” by bringing Pakistan’s nuclear capabilities under its security umbrella.
The deal stipulates that any attack on one of the signatories will be considered an attack on both.
“India and Saudi Arabia share a wide-ranging strategic partnership that has deepened in recent years,” Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters. “We expect that this partnership will continue to take into account mutual interests and sensitivities.”
Saudi Arabia is one of India’s largest suppliers of petroleum. Both countries have been expanding cooperation on crude oil and liquefied petroleum gas, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi announcing earlier this year that the two sides were exploring joint refinery and petrochemical projects.
India’s foreign ministry said on Thursday that it had been aware of the defense pact while it was under consideration and would carefully study its implications.
Pakistan, the only Muslim-majority nation with nuclear weapons, maintains an army of more than 600,000 soldiers, largely focused on countering India. The two neighbors have fought three wars and engaged in their heaviest fighting in decades during a four-day conflict in May.
