The tripartite defense agreement, officially named the 'Mecca Alliance' (Brit Meka), was signed Friday in Jeddah by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, according to the Pakistan Foreign Ministry and Turkish officials. The pact stipulates that an attack on any one of the three countries constitutes an attack on all, and Ankara described the accord as 'completely defensive' and open to other regional states.
Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan formalized the 'Mecca Alliance' (Brit Meka) on Friday, signing a tripartite defense agreement in Jeddah that pledges mutual military support. The pact was signed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The agreement was first reported by Reuters at 03:03 Jerusalem time, citing two sources who said the three countries would sign the accord during a meeting in Saudi Arabia. Over the following hours, reports confirmed the leaders' planned summit, and at 13:13 Erdogan arrived in Mecca. The Pakistan Foreign Ministry announced the signing at 13:31, stating that any military attack against one of the three nations would be considered an attack on all. A Turkish official later told Reuters the accord is 'completely defensive,' not directed against any specific entity, and open to other countries in the region.
The pact brings together NATO's second-largest military (Turkey), the Gulf's leading economic power (Saudi Arabia), and the Muslim world's only nuclear-armed state (Pakistan). The signing comes amid Saudi briefings that the kingdom expects an imminent large-scale attack, according to a source, and reflects Riyadh's dissatisfaction with the security umbrella provided by the United States during the recent war. The agreement may also signal a reduced Saudi motivation to pursue a normalization deal with Israel, as The Zioneer reported earlier today.
12 developments
- DevelopingPakistan's FM: Defense pact with Turkey, Saudi Arabia purely defensive, not aimed at any country
- StrongIranian FM spokesman: Turkey-Pakistan-Saudi defense pact not directed against Iran, citing deep ties
- DevelopingAnalysis: Muslim defense pact Israel can't ignore raises questions on regional partnerships
- DevelopingTurkish FM attacks criticism of 'Mecca alliance' with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan
Source and signal
- Open-source intake