Pakistan Braces for War With Iran

Pakistan sent troops, fighter jets and other military hardware to Saudi Arabia during the Iran war, Reuters reported yesterday. The two countries had signed a mutual defense treaty last year, obligating them to defend each other in war.

• It’s an interesting development, particularly since Pakistan has been mediating between Iran and the United States.

The Pakistanis look like they’re bracing for conflict with Iran:

• Reuters claims Pakistan sent 8,000 troops to Saudi Arabia, along with a full squadron of about 16 JF-17 fighter jets. Pakistan also reportedly sent two drone squadrons and a Chinese-made HQ-9 air defense system. Two sources told Reuters that Pakistan even intended to send warships.
• One source who saw the text of the defense agreement says it allows Pakistan to send up to 80,000 troops to Saudi Arabia, Reuters claims. The Pakistani government has previously implied the agreement puts Saudi Arabia under Pakistan’s nuclear umbrella. Pakistan has an estimated 170 nuclear warheads.

Prophetic perspective: Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry writes in The King of the South that Daniel 11:40 prophesies that Iran will ignite a nuclear world war by starting a conflict with Germany. Daniel states that Germany will conquer Iran “like a whirlwind,” implying Germany will place forces in the nations bordering Iran.

A related prophecy in Psalm 83 says the Ishmaelites, or Saudi Arabia, will be part of this strategy. Pakistan could be as well. The King of the South states:

Germany also has a strong relationship with Pakistan, Iran’s nuclear neighbor to the east. West Germany and Pakistan had strong relations since the 1950s out of a mutual hostility toward the Soviet Union. Germany is Pakistan’s largest trade partner within the EU. German arms exports to Pakistan are worth tens of millions of euros each year …. Pakistan [has historically been] among the top 10 export markets for German arms.

Although Pakistan is not listed in the Psalm 83 alliance, it could still play a role in Germany’s prophesied attack on Iran.