Pakistan's military chief bypasses old parliamentary resolution, invokes Mecca defense pact to send more troops to Saudi Arabia

According to the Times of India citing Reuters, Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir has agreed to rapidly deploy additional troops to Saudi Arabia, despite a Pakistani parliamentary vote 11 years ago deciding against intervening in the Houthi armed conflict. The new deployment invokes for the first time the joint defense pact signed in Mecca this August by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, against the backdrop of intensified recent Houthi attacks on targets inside Saudi Arabia.

Reuters noted that the Mecca pact builds on a 2025 Saudi-Pakistan bilateral defense agreement, under which Pakistan had deployed approximately 8,000 soldiers to Saudi Arabia by May of this year.

Pakistan's Ministry of Information claimed the alliance "has passed through all necessary government procedures," but did not specify whether the cabinet or parliament was involved, characterizing deployment details as "a matter of operational security."

Michael Kugelman, senior fellow for South Asia at the Atlantic Council, told Reuters that Pakistan has entered a different phase. "In the past, when Pakistan's parliament voted against deploying troops, the military would abide by the resolution. But now the situation has changed," Kugelman said.

Munir's power has expanded significantly over the past year. In 2025, he was awarded the lifetime rank of Field Marshal of the entire armed forces; under the relevant constitutional arrangement he may serve until 2030 and enjoys immunity from any criminal prosecution. Pakistan's military has long effectively controlled core government departments including defense and foreign relations; the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) continues to accuse the military of dominating national politics and is organizing protests demanding the release of its imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan.

The timing of the activation of the Mecca pact comes as the Saudi-led military operations in Yemen, backed by long-standing U.S. and British arms supplies and diplomatic support, have continued for years, while the Houthi armed forces' capacity to launch attacks continues to spill outward. Regional security architecture is increasingly being decided directly by in-region military chiefs, with substantive deliberation by parliaments and cabinets increasingly replaced by the administrative rhetoric of "operational security."