How Asim Munir’s private oil venture with IRGC shielded Saudi Arabia from Iranian strikes

The ongoing conflict between the United States (US) and Iran has stablished the entire Middle East, with Tehran targeting all of Washington’s bases in the Gulf, including those in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Kuwait. Strikes were also reported in Saudi Arabia, which has been one of Iran’s biggest regional rivals, but Tehran agreed to stop the attacks on Riyadh after Pakistan’s intervention.

According to a report by The Times of Israel, Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir leveraged a joint oil transport venture with Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) chief Ahmad Vahidi to seal a deal with Iran to halt its attack on Saudi Arabia. The agreement was sealed in March.

Citing three officials, report stated that “Munir dangled the continued operation of a joint venture with Vahidi that has been quietly transporting oil from Iran to Pakistan since late last year.” 

Though the report did not mention the name of the company, it said the joint venture helped Munir and Vahidi get huge dividends, especially when a naval blockade was imposed on Iran by President Donald Trump.

Over the weekend, Iran fired a missile at Saudi Arabia, but Munir threatened Vahidi that such strikes could risk the “the continued operation of their joint venture”. “Pakistan is interested in boosting its ties with Saudi Arabia, particularly if done in a manner where Riyadh becomes more reliant on Islamabad,” The Times of Israel quoted an official as saying.

The Saudi Arabia-Pakistan defence deal

The Times of Israel’s report is significant, as Saudi Arabia and Pakistan had signed a defence deal in September 2025, which was similar to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Under the agreement, called the ‘Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement’, an attack on either nation would be considered an attack on both.

The agreement was signed Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s visit to Saudi Arabia after his talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. “Any aggression against either country shall be considered an aggression against both,” the agreement stated, with both countries pledging to each other’s national security.

As part of the agreement, Pakistan has also send around 13,000 of its troops and 10 to 18 jets to the Kingdom, who are deployed at the King Abdulaziz Air Base, which was reported by India TV in April this year.

The India factor

The Saudi Arabia-Pakistan defence deal has caused concerns in India. Back when this deal was signed last year, the central government had said that it is analysing the deal’s impact, while assuring that it remains committed to protecting the country’s interests and security. 

“The Government was aware that this development, which formalises a long-standing arrangement between the two countries, had been under consideration. We will study the implications of this development for our national security as well as for regional and global stability,” Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had said.

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