Pakistan's army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, on Friday, discussed the recent Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia with Iran. This interaction comes days after Pakistani defence minister Khwaja Asif warned of activating the newly signed Mecca Defence Pact in view of the escalating conflict between Riyadh and the Yemeni militant group.
Field Marshal Munir spoke with Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi, a Pakistani official familiar with the matter told news agency Reuters.
The official added that while the talks mainly focused on restoring diplomatic efforts to end the ongoing war between the United States and Tehran, Islamabad also raised its concerns about the recent Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia.
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While not explicitly mentioned, this move from Munir also comes as a way to urge Iran to rein in the Houthis before the conflict escalates further.
The Houthis, who are a militant group in Yemen, are often regarded as a proxy group backed by Iran and part of Tehran's "axis of resistance" in the West Asia region along with Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Pakistan 'may act' when time comes
{{/usCountry}}The Houthis, who are a militant group in Yemen, are often regarded as a proxy group backed by Iran and part of Tehran's "axis of resistance" in the West Asia region along with Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Pakistan 'may act' when time comes
{{/usCountry}}In an interview with Geo TV earlier this week, Pakistani defence minister Khwaja Asif stated that the country may consider activating the Makkah defence agreement with Saudi Arabia and Turkey in view of the recent escalation between the kingdom and the Houthis.
"There should be no ambiguity; there is no need for any clarity that this is a joint defence agreement. There should be no doubt about this. We are bound by the terms and conditions of this pact and, God willing, we will honour them in case there is a need," Asif told the Pakistani news channel, adding that it will "honour" its commitment to Saudi Arabia under the pact.
The defence minister added that the agreement is not "aggressive in nature," but if there is aggression against one member state of the pact, all three countries will be driven to respond.
Asif added that the pact serves as a "deterrent" rather than an agreement that Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey will respond with military force at any given point.
Sajjad Haider Khan, the spokesperson for the Pakistani foreign ministry, also stated during a weekly press conference that no military plan is in place for a response to the Houthis.
However, Khan added that Islamabad stands ready to act “as and when the time comes.”
The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement was signed on August 7 between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. The alliance is also modelled after NATO's Article 5, which states that an attack on one ally is an attack on all.
The pact comes in view of the rising geopolitical tensions in the West Asia region due to the war against Iran.
Saudi-Houthi confrontation escalates
The conflict between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, which dates back to the 2014 civil war, escalated in July 2026, after Riyadh prevented an Iranian plane carrying a senior Houthi official from landing in Sana'a.
Since then, both Houthis and Saudi have exchanged a series of strikes, with the most recent attack targeting Saudi oil giant Aramco, Abha International Airport and King Khalid air base.
As per Saudi authorities, at least 73 people were injured in the militant attack.
This attack from the Houthis came after the Yemeni militant group accused Saudi of carrying out airstrikes in Yemen, which killed 11 people.
Furthermore, the tensions between Houthis and Saudi also stem from the militant groups' blocking and targeting of Saudi vessels in the Bab al-Mandab strait, which is now the key route for Riyadh's oil exports in view of the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz due to the US-Iran war.