Pakistan’s leadership was taken by surprise on Tuesday when Saudi Arabia named it a member of it’s 34- Muslim nation military alliance meant to combat terrorism – without prior consent.
Pakistan wasn’t the only nation taken by surprise. In an unprecedented move, Saudi Arabia named many countries in its self styled coalition for coordinating and supporting military operations against terrorism in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Egypt and Afghanistan. The headquarters of the new Saudi-led coalition would be based in Riyadh.
Talking to journalists, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry said he was surprised to read the news and that Pakistan’s ambassador in Riyadh had been tasked with getting clarification from Saudi Arabia on the matter. It is Pakistani government’s policy that it will not deploy its troops outside the country’s borders except for UN peacekeeping missions.