Saudi Arabia marks its 96th National Day at an important point in its modern history. For decades, much of the outside world viewed the Kingdom primarily through the lenses of oil, religion and geopolitics. That picture is no longer sufficient. Saudi Arabia today is attempting something much broader: to diversify its economy, reshape its cities, open new sectors and redefine how a new generation of Saudis sees its place in the world.
I had an opportunity to see a small part of this changing Saudi Arabia during a visit to the Kingdom last year, at the invitation of the Saudi Ministry of Media. The visit brought me into conversation with Saudi journalists and media professionals, allowing me not only to speak about Pakistan’s own media landscape but, more importantly, to listen and learn from colleagues working in a society undergoing rapid change.
What stayed with me was not simply the scale of the projects underway, which are already well documented, but the sense of transition among the people I met. Conversations with Saudi journalists reflected a country increasingly interested in telling its own story, engaging more confidently with the outside world and thinking seriously about what its next generation should look like. There was pride in the Kingdom’s history, certainly, but also an unmistakable preoccupation with the future.
That balance between continuity and change is perhaps one of the more interesting ways to understand Saudi Arabia on its National Day.
Vision 2030 has provided the framework for much of this transformation. The Saudi economy is being pushed towards tourism, technology, logistics, mining, renewable energy, artificial intelligence and other non oil sectors. Women have assumed a substantially larger role in the workforce, while entertainment, sport and cultural activity have become increasingly visible parts of public life. The changes have been fast, and ambitions of this scale will inevitably face challenges and adjustments along the way. But the direction of travel is clear.
For Pakistan, this transformation matters for reasons that go beyond the familiar language of friendship and brotherhood.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia already possess something many bilateral relationships spend decades trying to create: genuine familiarity between their peoples. Millions of Pakistanis have lived and worked in the Kingdom, Saudi Arabia has remained one of Pakistan’s most important economic partners, and religious and cultural connections have given the relationship a depth that cannot be captured by trade figures alone.
But precisely because those foundations are so strong, the relationship should now be capable of becoming more ambitious.
A diversifying Saudi economy creates opportunities for Pakistani engineers, doctors, technology professionals, entrepreneurs, financial specialists and skilled workers. It creates possibilities for Pakistani companies in information technology, agriculture, construction, tourism and professional services. Pakistan should therefore be asking a practical question: as Saudi Arabia builds the economy it wants to have in 2030 and beyond, where do Pakistani businesses, professionals and young people fit into it?
My conversations in Saudi Arabia reinforced this point. The Kingdom is not simply looking for labour or traditional commercial relationships. It is increasingly interested in knowledge, technology, investment, skills and international partnerships. Pakistan has strengths in many of these areas, but friendship alone will not convert them into opportunities. That requires institutions, businesses and policymakers on both sides to identify areas where the relationship can produce measurable results.
The strategic dimension of the relationship is evolving as well. The Makkah Joint Defence Agreement signed by Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye in August represents a significant development in regional security cooperation. Its collective defence provision formalises, in a new way, security relationships that have existed in different forms for decades.
Yet closer security cooperation also brings greater responsibility. The Middle East continues to experience profound instability, and the consequences of conflict increasingly travel beyond national borders. Deterrence has its place, but so do diplomacy, restraint and sustained engagement. Pakistan’s relationship with Saudi Arabia is exceptionally close, and the security of the Kingdom and the holy sites carries enormous significance for Pakistanis. At the same time, Pakistan maintains relationships across the wider region. Its contribution will be strongest when strategic cooperation is accompanied by an ability to communicate across political divides.
This is why the next chapter of Pakistan-Saudi relations should not be defined solely by what the two countries have historically meant to one another. It should also be defined by what they can build together.
There is considerable room for greater trade and investment, stronger private sector partnerships, collaboration in technology and digital media, educational exchanges and more structured engagement between young professionals. Media, too, has a role to play. One lesson I took from meeting Saudi journalists last year was how useful direct professional engagement can be. Too often countries understand one another through official statements or inherited perceptions. Journalists, academics, entrepreneurs and young professionals meeting their counterparts can create a much more textured understanding.
Saudi Arabia itself is a good example of why that matters. The Kingdom I encountered was more complex than many of the conventional descriptions attached to it. It was proud of its traditions but eager to modernise; conscious of its regional weight but increasingly outward looking; and, perhaps most noticeably, populated by young professionals who wanted to participate in where their country was heading.
None of this means that transformation should be viewed uncritically. Every ambitious national project ultimately has to be judged over time by the institutions it builds, the opportunities it creates and the extent to which economic change becomes sustainable. But Saudi Arabia’s willingness to attempt transformation on this scale is itself consequential for the region.
National Days naturally encourage countries to look back. Saudi Arabia’s 96th National Day also provides reason to look forward.
For Saudi Arabia, the coming years will test how successfully the ambitions of Vision 2030 can be translated into lasting economic and social gains. For Pakistan, they offer an opportunity to rethink an old friendship for a new era.
The warmth between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia does not need exaggerated language to establish its importance. Its history already speaks for itself. The more meaningful tribute on this National Day is to consider how that relationship can continue evolving.
