PM Shehbaz slams Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia in UNGA speech, demands for open Hormuz, Bab al-Mandab

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has urged caution and diplomacy as tensions rise in the Middle East and said the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye was not aimed at any particular country.

In a speech to the United Nations General Assembly, the prime minister criticised the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and called for keeping open two key maritime routes, the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab.

The “historic Makkah Joint Defence Agreement” among the three countries was a reflection of Pakistan’s commitment to peace, said PM Shehbaz, calling it a collective commitment to defence, stability and peace in the area.

“This is not an alliance against any country,” he declared. “It is a collective commitment for defence, stability and peace in the region and nothing more.

The pact, agreed by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye on August 7, calls for member governments to take an assault against one as an attack against all. Officials from the three nations have now started working on the institutional structure of the accord and Pakistan will lead up its secretariat in Riyadh.