Skip to content
Himal Southasian
Sign in Sign up

Amid the war in Iran, the Saudi–UAE rivalry arrives in Southasia

Pakistan’s growing proximity to Saudi Arabia has pushed the UAE closer to India, which could have implications for theatres of conflict such as Balochistan and Kashmir

By Salman Rafi Sheikh
Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman, sitting on the right, meets with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif sitting on the left in Jeddah.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman meets with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Jeddah. As the mediator, and with the world paying minute attention to the US-Iran negotiations, Pakistan finds itself in a prominent but tricky position. A major difficulty it faces in West Asia is that it can no longer play the neutral between the two big Gulf powers – Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – and benefit from the generosity of both. IMAGO/APA Images
Published:
Share to X Share to Bluesky Share to Facebook Share to LinkedIn Share by email