The fragile calm that had largely held between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi movement for several years is showing signs of breaking down. A fresh round of attacks and counterattacks centered on Sanaa airport and Saudi territory has revived fears of a wider regional escalation at a time when tensions involving Iran are already running dangerously high. What might otherwise have remained a localised confrontation now risks becoming part of a much larger geopolitical struggle stretching from the Gulf to the Red Sea.
For Pakistan, the stakes are unusually high. Islamabad has spent years balancing close strategic ties with Saudi Arabia while maintaining workable relations with neighbouring Iran. That balancing act becomes significantly harder if Saudi-Houthi hostilities intensify. The existence of a recently signed Saudi-Pakistan mutual defence agreement adds an entirely new layer of complexity and raises difficult questions about how far Pakistan could be expected to go if Riyadh comes under sustained attack.
