Saudi Arabia stated that if Pakistan makes a request, the Saudi Air Force will bomb the Taliban in Afghanistan, as both sides have signed a strategic mutual defense treaty, under which an attack on either country is considered an attack on both.

This statement by Saudi Arabia came at the same time as Pakistan's defense minister announced a public declaration of war against the Taliban. This is not really about sending planes to bomb Kabul, but rather a form of diplomatic deterrence. The conditions for triggering the treaty must be formally requested by the Pakistani government, and currently, Pakistan has only made verbal threats without submitting any formal documents, because once a request is made to Saudi Arabia to intervene, it would mean that the Pakistani military acknowledges its inability to defeat the Taliban, which is an unacceptable humiliation for the military.

Saudi has long been discontent with the Afghan Taliban and has not recognized their regime's legitimacy. The reason is that the Taliban's relations with Iran are warming up (both opposing the US and engaging in oil trade), which is a red line for Saudi Arabia (the leader of Sunni Islam). In the past, Saudi Arabia spent large sums of money (in the 1980s and 1990s) to support the Taliban against the Soviet Union and Iran, but now the Taliban have completely aligned with Saudi Arabia's arch-enemy, which Saudi Arabia cannot tolerate.

Secondly, although both Saudi Arabia (Wahhabi) and the Taliban (Deobandi) are extremely conservative, the right to interpret Islamic law is the lifeblood of the Saudi royal family. Saudi Arabia is now relaxing social controls to transition its economy (such as allowing women to drive and opening cinemas). However, the Taliban still adhere to strict fundamentalist practices, such as enforcing stoning and banning female education. As the self-proclaimed leader of the Islamic world, Saudi Arabia faces a grassroots challenge from the Taliban, as the Taliban's fundamentalist behavior is even purer than Saudi Arabia's, making Saudi Arabia appear less pious and undermining its religious authority among Sunnis.

Border clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan escalate

Original: toutiao.com/article/1858333405727754/

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