Middle Eastern | Pakistan

For decades, the world assessed Pakistan through a narrow lens: a frontline state in the war on terror, a nuclear power locked in rivalry with India, a country defined by its instability rather than its influence. That lens was always too small, and the past year has proven it. The US-Iran war and its aftermath have done what years of diplomatic messaging could not: they have forced Washington, Riyadh, and Abu Dhabi to recognise what Pakistan has quietly known for a long time: Pakistan is not a peripheral actor in Middle Eastern politics; it is fast becoming one of the region’s most indispensable players. The proof came in September 2025, when Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed a Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement in Riyadh, a pact that formalised what had long been an informal reality: Pakistan is Saudi Arabia’s most credible security partner outside the American umbrella. Security guarantor That agreement came just a week after Israeli strikes on Hamas officials ...

A US naval strike group led by an aircraft carrier has deployed to Middle Eastern waters, the United States said on Monday, as Tehran warned it was ready to hit back at any American attack launched in response to a crackdown on anti-government protests. The protests started in late December, driven by economic grievances, but turned into a mass movement against the Islamic Republic, with huge street demonstrations for several days from January 8. But rights groups have accused authorities of quelling the movement with unprecedented violence, shooting into crowds of protesters under the cover of an internet shutdown that has now lasted 18 days — the longest Iran has ever imposed. US President Donald Trump has previously threatened to step in, saying last week that Washington was sending a “massive fleet” to the region “just in case”. The deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group dramatically boosts American firepower in the region. The United States backed and briefly joined Israel’s 12-day wa...