What accounts for Pakistan’s troop deployment to Saudi Arabia?
Tehran (KNA) - Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have historically had close military partnership in the Middle East, and Islamabad has recently announced that it is sending troops to the oil-rich kingdom on a “training and advice mission,” without specifying the exact role the soldiers will play there.
Pakistan Army announced the deployment decision after a meeting between Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa and Saudi Ambassador to Pakistan Nawaf Saeed al-Maliki at the army headquarters in the eastern Pakistani city of Rawalpindi on February 15.
It came after General Bajwa paid a three-day visit to Saudi Arabia earlier this month and met with high-profile officials, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Commander of Ground Forces Lieutenant General Prince Fahd bin Turki bin Abdulaziz.
It was reportedly the Pakistani commander's second trip to Saudi Arabia in two months, which apparently played a role in the Pakistani Army's decision to deploy soldiers to Saudi Arabia.
Source: Press TV