The Turkish Vice President stated that Saudi Arabia will provide financial support in exchange for a joint defense arrangement, according to a report.
The Turkish Vice President stated Saturday that Saudi Arabia will provide financial support to Turkey in exchange for a joint defense arrangement, according to a report. The statement adds a financial dimension to the tripartite defense pact that Pakistan confirmed earlier Saturday, after initial reports of the NATO-style agreement emerged.
The day's developments unfolded rapidly. Saturday morning (08:01 Jerusalem), the three nations' flags were projected on a Riyadh skyscraper following the signing of a trilateral agreement. Shortly after, i24NEWS reported the pact was a formal NATO-style defense agreement signed amid rising tensions with Iran. Pakistan's foreign ministry then officially confirmed the pact, stipulating that an attack on any of the three countries is considered an attack on all. That confirmation moved the story from media reports to official government attribution. The Turkish Vice President's statement later in the day provided the first indication of a financial component to the arrangement.
The pact formalizes a strategic alignment between Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan, as The Zioneer reported on Friday, when Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Mecca ahead of the signing. The deepening security cooperation between Ankara and Riyadh has been a recurring theme, with prior reports of defense coordination and a Saudi-Turkish diplomatic call on regional de-escalation, as The Zioneer has covered.
What remains unclear: The scope, timing, and specific terms of the financial support from Saudi Arabia, and how it relates to the mutual defense clause. The Turkish Vice President did not provide additional details.
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