Pakistan can sell weapons in the Middle East, but can it sell security?
Pakistan’s defence exports are growing, but internal insecurity threatens its ambitions.
![Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a defence agreement on September 17 in Riyadh [Handout/Pakistan Prime Minister's Office]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/30695b7f-06e3-4469-9fa5-0a6a94c33ed3-1768391410.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
The conflict has mutated into a zero-sum collision of competing messianic frameworks.

Pakistan’s defence exports are growing, but internal insecurity threatens its ambitions.
![Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a defence agreement on September 17 in Riyadh [Handout/Pakistan Prime Minister's Office]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/30695b7f-06e3-4469-9fa5-0a6a94c33ed3-1768391410.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
Pakistan has long juggled ties with China and the US successfully. It’s open turn towards Beijing risks ending that.
