ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explores a range of factors and events that led to the decision by Pakistan to invest in nuclear weapons technology in order to acquire the bomb. It discusses Pakistan’s relationship with Saudi Arabia over the past 70 years. The book considers Pakistan’s relationship with Saudi Arabia along three central themes: religion, economy and security. It focuses on how great power politics in South Asia and the Middle East shaped and constrained the perceptions of common interests between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. The book addresses the turbulence of the formative days of Pakistan-Saudi relations, expanding on the regional context that prompted Pakistan to sign the Baghdad Pact in 1955, which led to King Saud openly criticizing Pakistan in a meeting with Prime Minister Nehru during the Suez Canal crisis in 1956.
