While Britain and America were engrossed in the pageantry and diplomacy of a US presidential visit last week, another event pretty much went unnoticed in most Western capitals – and it could have a profound impact on geopolitics.

The “Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement” was signed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on 17 September.

Seen as an “Islamic NATO” in the making, at its core is the clause that “any aggression against either country, shall be considered an aggression against both”.

Article 5 of NATO states the same, and is the cornerstone principle of collective defence that binds members of the alliance.

If an ally is attacked, each member will consider it an attack against them all and will take action to help. This clause has often been cited since Putin’s war on Ukraine.

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have a longstanding relationship, with Pakistan willing to defend the holy sites of Mecca and Medina as Shia Iran threatened the Kingdom.

The new pact between Sunni Saudi Arabia, a country considered the heart of the Islamic world, with Pakistan – the only Muslim nuclear nation – is bound to set a new order.

Pakistani defence minister Khawaja Asif said “the deterrence that we get from nuclear weapons, and what we have, and the capabilities we possess, will be made available to Saudi Arabia according to this agreement”.

Pakistan has also not ruled out other Islamic nations joining the coalition and its deputy prime minister, Ishaq Dar, said “other countries have also expressed a desire for similar arrangements”.

The signing took place a week after Israel launched airstrikes against Hamas officials discussing US ceasefire proposals in a Qatari government complex.

The unprecedented attack in Doha has shattered the illusion of American reliability in the region for rich Arab and Gulf countries.

Israel’s menacing military strikes – in Iran, Lebanon, Yemen, Syria and Qatar – have precipitated the idea of a protective nuclear umbrella of their own.

Major blow for India

A cash-strapped, politically unstable and quasi-military Pakistan, willing to share its weapons, is a win-win for both countries.

It’s a coup for Pakistan because a client like Saudi Arabia puts it centre stage in the Islamic world, with its credibility sky high and the potential for more patrons.

It has also dealt a major diplomatic and security blow to nuclear arch rival India, against whom it’s fought multiple wars and clashes.

Relations between Saudi Arabia, Gulf nations and India have improved considerably over the years.

But the concern is, would the pact automatically bring these nations into Pakistan’s corner if there was a conflict with India.

After the deadly clashes between the two countries in May, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said “we have merely suspended our retaliatory actions against Pakistan’s terrorist and military targets for now”.

India’s foreign ministry said it would “study the implications for national security and regional and global stability”.

It added: “India and Saudi Arabia have a wide-ranging strategic partnership which has deepened considerably in the last few years. We expect that this strategic partnership will keep in mind mutual interests and sensitivities.”

However, there will be worry and concern in the Indian establishment as its nemesis has prized open a door which they hope does not become a chasm.

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The Indians will be hoping the pact remains one of just political solidarity and doesn’t transform into unconditional war guarantees.

India’s diplomacy faces huge challenges; it has been singled out by President Trump for a punitive 25% extra tariff for buying discounted Russian oil, taking the total to 50%, one of the highest in the world.

Relations with China have also been very difficult over the years, while ties between Pakistan and China have strengthened into an all-weather friendship.

The Saudi-Pakistan deal aims to expand military cooperation, joint exercises and intelligence sharing to counter threats, terrorism and cross-border insurgencies.

It also covers the transfer of technology and co-production of military equipment between the countries.

This pact could change the course of the Middle East as Pakistan’s 170 warheads provide the Kingdom with a deterrent that might later expand to cover other countries – an Islamic NATO with potential to reshape the world.

Flights have been cancelled, schools and businesses have closed, and thousands of people have been forced to leave their homes as one of the strongest typhoons of recent years approaches southern China and Hong Kong.

Super Typhoon Ragasa, with winds near its centre of around 137mph (220kmh), according to Hong Kong’s observatory, is travelling across the South China Sea towards Guangdong province, the southern Chinese economic powerhouse.

At least three people have died and more than 17,500 displaced by flooding and landslides in the Philippines because of the storm, categorised as a “super typhoon” by the observatory because it contains winds of more than 115mph (185kmh).

Ragasa is expected to make landfall in the coastal area between the cities of Zhuhai and Zhanjiang in Guangdong on Wednesday between midday and evening, local time, China’s National Meteorological Centre said.

Sandbags and barriers have been placed by doors to protect homes, and windows and glass doors have been taped ahead of expected high winds.

Many people stockpiled food and other supplies on Monday, and some market traders said their goods were selling out fast.

Hurricane-force winds were forecast across a wide area, the observatory said, confirming it will issue the third-highest storm warning signal in its weather alert system, on Tuesday afternoon.

Winds of 84mph (135kph) were recorded near the ground at a distance of about 75 miles (120km) from the typhoon’s centre, it said.

Water levels may go as high as four to five metres (13ft to 16ft) above the typical lowest sea level, while coastal areas could see rises of up to two metres (6.5ft).

Schools were closed in Hong Kong and the neighbouring city of Macao, while classes were cancelled in other cities, including the tech hub of Shenzhen.

Hundreds of flights were cancelled in Hong Kong. Shenzhen Airport will halt all flights from Tuesday night.

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The Macao government was evacuating residents and tourists and ordered bridges to close in the evening as it expected Ragasa would pass within 62 miles (100km) to the south of the casino hub on Wednesday morning.

At least six people were injured and over 7,000 people were evacuated in Taiwan when the typhoon swept south of the island, and over 8,000 households lost power, the Central News Agency reported.

As well as the three known to have died, five others are missing in the Philippines because of Ragasa, the most powerful storm to hit the Southeast Asian archipelago this year, the country’s disaster-response agency and provincial officials said.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will meet President Donald Trump on Tuesday, but Ukraine’s hopes of a tough new sanctions package on Russia appear to be fading.

Despite intense lobbying by Kyiv and its European allies, the US leader has thus far refused to get tough with Vladimir Putin despite a string of alleged airspace violations by Russian aircraft and drones along Europe’s eastern flank.

It comes as the brutal struggle to hold the line in eastern Ukraine continues, where Russian forces exert pressure all along the front including around the crucial city of Pokrovsk.

Meanwhile in Moscow, Russian anti-aircraft units downed 33 Ukrainian drones headed for the capital overnight and into Tuesday morning, officials said.

Zelenskyy to address UN assembly

President Zelenskyy will address a UN General Assembly on Wednesday that has been dominated by discussion of the question of Palestinian statehood.

Beforehand, he will meet President Trump to discuss new sanctions on Russia, which the US leader had hinted at but hopes of which have recently faded.

Ukrainian officials portrayed their work before President Zelenskyy’s arrival as pragmatic diplomacy rather than preparations for a make-or-break trip.

“New York is the platform every September. It’s a super important place to be,” first deputy foreign minister Sergiy Kyslytsya said.

“I wish it were more expedient, but you will never have easy solutions to the conflicts of this magnitude.

“So I think that we will not come back from New York, all of us, with easy solutions. And we will continue to work hard after New York.”

‘Drone wall’ for Europe

The mood in European capitals has been tense following a series of incursions into their airspace by Russian drones and aircraft – alleged to be deliberate.

British jets flew their first defence mission in Polish skies as part of a NATO mission after one such incident.

The EU’s foreign policy chief – former Estonia prime minister Kaja Kallas – said “every country has the right to defend itself and act accordingly” if Russian planes violate their airspace.

This was echoed by Yvette Cooper, the new UK foreign secretary. She said: “And if we need to confront planes that are operating in NATO airspace without permission then we will do so.

“The United Kingdom stands by our friends.”

The parents of Callum Tindal-Draper, a British man who died on the battlefield in Ukraine in November, paid tribute to him on Sky News on Tuesday.

They praised him as someone who stood up to bullies, fighting in Ukraine’s foreign volunteer platoon.

Lithuania’s foreign minister called for Ukraine to be fully integrated into a plan to protect NATO’s borders with drones due to its experience pioneering cutting-edge technology in the heat of combat.

The EU is looking at how to create a “drone wall” along the EU’s eastern border – a project that has been infused with urgency following recent incidents.

“We have to bring this technology to the front line and to build it there, build it there so that it will be effective together with Ukrainians,” Kestutis Budrys said.

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Ukraine battlefield: The struggle for Pokrovsk

On the battlefield in Ukraine, Russia has claimed a number of advances as its troops continue to push along the frontline.

Russia’s defence ministry said its forces captured the village of Pereizne in Donetsk, where Moscow has been grinding forward for months at the cost of heavy casualties.

Putin’s armies have long been trying to capture the rest of Donetsk, part of Ukraine’s industrial heartland that Russia claims as its own following a bogus referendum.

A chain of Ukrainian cities nicknamed the “fortress belt” has held the line there for more than a decade, but shortages of troops, supplies and chaotic management are making it increasingly hard to resist Russia’s relentless pressure.

But a Ukrainian commander says he’s confident Russia’s latest attempt to push through there won’t work.

“From a military point of view it looks correct – on the map it looks neat – but after nearly three-and-a-half years of war we all know that such deep manoeuvres and wide flanking operations are not Russia’s forte,” Colonel Pavlo Yurchuk told the Associated Press.

Col Yurchuk, whose troops are defending a small city at the northern end of the fortress belt, added: “They simply won’t be able to control and supply those penetrations, so I’m sure that they will fail.”

Meanwhile Pokrovsk, a crucial logistics hub for Kyiv, remains in Ukrainian hands for now despite its defenders facing months of unrelenting attack.

“Our warriors are marching forward,” the head of Ukraine’s armed forces Oleksandr Syrskyi said of the Pokrovsk front on Monday.

The commander-in-chief said in the previous day 1.3 square kilometres had been taken by Ukraine and Russian forces destroyed in a further 2.1 square kilometres.

Elsewhere, Russian aircraft attacked the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia with glide bombs during the night, killing a man, regional head Ivan Fedorov said on Tuesday.

In Odesa, Russian ballistic missiles struck the town centre of Tatarbunary, killing a woman, regional head Oleh Kiper said.

Footage from Ukraine’s state emergency service shows firefighters battling flames in Zaporizhzhia.

Drones shot down on route to Moscow

Across the border, Ukraine’s aim to bring the war to Russia’s population continued overnight, with 33 drones downed as they headed for Moscow, officials claimed.

Kyiv’s drone armies have become a fact of life for Russia, with long-range UAVs causing havoc at oil refineries and airfields as Ukraine attempts to hamper the Kremlin’s war economy.

Flights were delayed and cancelled at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport, the country’s largest by passenger numbers, following the drone attacks.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said on Telegram that its anti-aircraft units had destroyed 150 Ukrainian drones overnight and Tuesday morning.

As well as on route to Moscow, drones were reported shot down near Sevastopol in occupied Crimea and Tula region in central Russia.

Ukraine’s military said on Tuesday that it hit two Russian oil distribution facilities in Bryansk and Samara regions.

Autoplay videos credit: AP.