Pakistan deployed 8,000 troops, Chinese air defence system and warplanes to Saudi Arabia: Report

Pakistan deployed 8,000 troops, Chinese air defence system and warplanes to Saudi Arabia: Report Submitted by MEE staff on Mon, 05/18/2026 - 21:40 The US-Israeli war on Iran has put a spotlight on Saudi Arabia’s defence pact with Pakistan Pakistani fighter jets fly during a multinational naval exercise in the Arabian Sea near Pakistan's port city of Karachi, on 10 February 2025 (Asif Hassan/AFP) Off Pakistan has deployed 8,000 troops, a fighter jet squadron and a Chinese air defence system to Saudi Arabia as part of its mutual defence pact with the kingdom, Reuters reported on Monday. The deployments, which enhance the number of Pakistani troops and military assets in the kingdom, began in early April, Reuters reported. Pakistan has deployed a squadron of around 16 aircraft, mostly JF-17 warplanes, which it produces jointly with China.