Firstly, troops are being sent as part of the longstanding bilateral security cooperation between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. Secondly, troops who are already stationed in the Kingdom and fresh contingent would not be deployed outside Saudi Arabia. Over 13,00 Pakistani soldiers have already been stationed in Saudi Arabia as part of a 1982 agreement between the two countries. In 2015, the government took the Saudi request to parliament, which passed a unanimous resolution outlining guidelines for Pakistan’s engagement with Saudi Arabia. Having said that deploying additional troops in Saudi Arabia can cast a shadow on Pakistan’s ties with Iran.

Source: The Express Tribune February 19, 2018 04:30 UTC