Saudi Arabia turns to Pakistan, Turkey as US refuses to intervene against Houthi threat - analysis

Saudi Arabia, rebuffed by the US in its request for military intervention against Iran-aligned Houthi rebels, is forging new alliances with Pakistan and Turkey under the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement. The kingdom faces a 25% contraction in oil activities, a near 5% GDP drop, and Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping and energy infrastructure, forcing cuts to Vision 2030 projects. The analysis notes the Houthis have threatened retaliation against any intervening party, and observers expect a Saudi-led air campaign with Yemeni ground forces.

Saudi Arabia is urgently pivoting away from its decades-long reliance on the US security umbrella after the Trump administration refused to intervene against the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels who threaten the kingdom's Red Sea lifeline and energy infrastructure. The Houthis overran Yemeni coastal cities in September 2026, seizing territory near the Bab al-Mandab strait, and have blockaded Saudi Red Sea shipping — now the kingdom's main export corridor after the Strait of Hormuz standoff with Iran cut off its primary channel. Saudi Arabia has responded by supercharging military diplomacy: it established the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, a NATO-style pact with Turkey and Pakistan where an attack on any signatory is an attack on all three, and has pursued a detente with the UAE. The economic toll is severe — a 25% contraction in oil activities and a near 5% GDP drop between April and June 2026, forcing painful cuts to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's Vision 2030 giga-projects like the Line and Trojena. Pakistan has 8,000 troops and fighter jets already stationed in the kingdom, while Turkey offers technical military support. The US, despite signing a strategic defense agreement with Saudi Arabia in 2025 and designating it a major non-NATO ally, pulled back from planned airstrikes on Houthi targets. The analysis notes the Houthis have threatened retaliation against any intervening party, and observers expect a Saudi-led air campaign with Yemeni ground forces, possibly with Pakistani support limited to border security.