Caught in the Gulf crossfire: Pakistan navigates Saudi-UAE rivalry
Pakistan has to walk a fine line to ensure that it maintains vital economic relations with the United Arab Emirates while sustaining long-standing defense cooperation with Saudi Arabia.
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari’s visit to Abu Dhabi this week highlighted the growing dilemma his country faces as the rivalry between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates increasingly shapes regional politics and economic competition. Long reliant on close ties with both Gulf powers, Islamabad is finding it harder to maintain an even balance in its relations with Riyadh and Abu Dhabi as the interests of the two countries diverge, including over the conflicts in Yemen and Sudan, exposing strategic and economic fault lines between them.
In Yemen, Saudi Arabia backs the central government and its coalition, while the UAE has supported separatist forces in the south, a division that sparked a brief conflict and public recriminations earlier this month. In Sudan, Abu Dhabi and Riyadh back rival factions amid an ongoing civil war and political instability.
These strains have begun to affect Pakistan’s economic dealings in the Gulf.
Eyebrows were raised when Abu Dhabi stepped back from plans to assume management of Islamabad International Airport, after repeated delays by the UAE to nominate a local partner for the proposed arrangement, Pakistani media reported in mid-January. While no lease or concession agreement had been signed, the episode underscored how Pakistan’s deep economic reliance on Gulf partners leaves major investment initiatives vulnerable to shifting priorities in the region, often driven by political uncertainty.
