- Saudi east-west pipeline may remain closed six weeks.
- Pakistan considering rerouting tanker via Oman or UAE.
- PM Shehbaz condemns drone attack on holy city of Makkah.
Pakistan has issued a stark warning that any attack on an empty oil tanker stranded in the Red Sea near Saudi Arabia’s east-west pipeline would be treated as an “act of war”, as the government in Islamabad weighs its options for the vessel amid rapidly dwindling diesel reserves, Bloomberg reported.
Speaking to a private news channel, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik said that the tanker would have to be moved regardless of circumstances.
“We will have to move it one way or another,” he said, adding that Saudi authorities had requested the vessel remain on standby for the time being.
The Saudi east-west pipeline — which had served as a critical bypass route for the kingdom’s oil exports to circumvent the turmoil in the Strait of Hormuz — was shut down last week following the Houthis attacks and may remain closed for up to six weeks.
Pakistan’s options for the stranded vessel include keeping it at the pipeline until operations resume, sailing it home via Oman or the United Arab Emirates, or alternatively securing crude supplies from Libya, Malik said.
He warned that if crude supplies were curtailed, Pakistan faced an imminent diesel shortage, as the country held stocks only for the current and coming month.
Houthis have been launching near-daily attacks on Saudi Arabia for two weeks, capturing additional territory in Yemen and tightening their grip on the Bab al-Mandab strait at the southern entrance to the Red Sea — another critical chokepoint for global shipping and energy markets.
Despite the ongoing conflict, ships sailing under Pakistan’s flag have managed to transit the Strait of Hormuz since the US-Iran war began in late February, with Islamabad having played a pivotal mediating role throughout the conflict.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reiterated Pakistan’s unwavering support for Saudi Arabia and condemned a drone attack targeting the holy city of Makkah, according to a statement from his office.
Pakistan has previously said any attack on the kingdom could activate the trilateral Makkah Defence Alliance signed last month between Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan.
