ISLAMABAD -- Pakistani troops deployed to Saudi Arabia are there solely for routine training, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said Thursday (February 22), Dawn reported.
A statement by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) last week announced that a Pakistani army contingent would be stationed in Saudi Arabia on a "training and advisory mission", sparking rumors of Pakistan's involvement in the conflict in Yemen.
Abbasi denied the rumors in an interview with Express News that aired Thursday.
"Training elements" rather than combat troops are being sent to Saudi Arabia, Abbasi said.
"The reality is very different from the perception," he said. "There is no deployment from here. No force is going to attack anyone over there."
For the past 40 years, Pakistani forces have been deployed in Saudi Arabia for training purposes, he added.
"Some personnel go and some come back. Sometimes they are less and more at other times. This is routine practice. There is nothing new," Abbasi said.
