"Blow to PM's much-hyped personality-driven diplomacy": Congress on Saudi-Pak defence pact

New Delhi [India], September 18 (ANI): The Congress party on Thursday raised serious concerns following Pakistan and Saudi Arabia's defence pact, calling it a setback to India's security interests and a failure of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "much-hyped personality-driven diplomacy."
In a social media post on X, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh pointed out the series of events that took place following the pause on Operation Sindoor, including United States President Donald Trump meeting Pakistani Army chief Asim Munir and Chinese President Xi Jinping meeting Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari just after Prime Minister Modi's visit to China was "matter of grave concern for India's national security."
The social media post reads, "One month after abruptly halting Operation Sindoor, President Trump hosted Field Marshal Asim Munir for lunch at the House--the same individual whose inflammatory, provocative, communally toxic statements provided oxygen to the brutal terrorist attacks in Pahalgam in April 2025.
"Just days after our Prime Minister's much-publicized visit to China, President Xi Jinping opened the doors of China's secret military complex to Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari. Now, Saudi Arabia--where the Prime Minister was present during the Pahalgam terrorist attacks on April 22, 2025--has signed a "strategic mutual defense" agreement with Pakistan," it added.
"All of this is undoubtedly a matter of grave concern for India's national security. The Indian National Congress expresses deep concern over this and considers it another blow to our Prime Minister's much-hyped personality-driven diplomacy," Ramesh posted on X.

ऑपरेशन सिंदूर को अचानक रोकने के एक महीने बाद, राष्ट्रपति ट्रंप ने व्हाइट हाउस में लंच पर फील्ड मार्शल आसिम मुनीर की मेज़बानी की --वही व्यक्ति जिसके भड़काऊ, उकसावे भरे, और साम्प्रदायिक जहर घोलने वाले बयानों ने अप्रैल 2025 को पहलगाम में हुए क्रूरतम आतंकी हमलों को ऑक्सीजन प्रदान…

— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) September 18, 2025

These remarks came after Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed a "Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement", pledging that any aggression against either nation would be treated as an attack on both.
The agreement was inked during a state visit by Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday to Riyadh at the invitation of Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
According to a joint statement issued following the visit, "building on the historic partnership extending for nearly eight decades between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and based on the bonds of brotherhood and Islamic solidarity, as well as shared strategic interests and close defence cooperation between the two countries, HRH the Crown Prince and the Pakistani prime minister signed a Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement."
"This agreement, which reflects the shared commitment of both nations to enhance their security and to achieve security and peace in the region and the world, aims to develop aspects of defence cooperation between the two countries and strengthen joint deterrence against any aggression. The agreement states that any aggression against either country shall be considered an aggression against both," the joint statement further read.
Responding to this, India stated that it will closely examine the pact's implications for India's national security and regional and global stability.
In a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that New Delhi acknowledges the formalisation of what it described as a "long-standing arrangement" between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, while noting that it would closely examine its potential ramifications.
Jaiswal further emphasised that India's national security remains paramount in light of this development.
"We have seen reports of the signing of a strategic mutual defence pact between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. The Government was aware that this development, which formalises a long-standing arrangement between the two countries, had been under consideration. We will study the implications of this development for our national security as well as for regional and global stability. The Government remains committed to protecting India's national interests and ensuring comprehensive national security in all domains," the statement from the MEA read. (ANI)