Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan set to sign defence agreement in Mecca

Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are expected to sign a joint defence agreement on Friday, sources with knowledge of the matter said. The pact comes amid regional turmoil, with Gulf states facing attacks from Iran after it was attacked by the United States and Israel.

Agreement details

Two regional sources with direct knowledge of the matter said the agreement would be signed on Friday, a Turkish official later confirmed. Another regional source said it was unclear whether the agreement would be publicly announced on the same day.

There was no immediate clarity on the commitments of each country or on how the pact could affect the wider Middle East crisis.

Regional context

The agreement would further strengthen ties among major Sunni Muslim powers allied with the United States. The three countries share concerns about instability in the Middle East, the role of revolutionary Shi’ite Iran and an increasingly assertive Israel, as the United States seeks to contain regional threats.

Turkey has NATO’s second-largest military. Saudi Arabia is the strongest Gulf state, hosts Islam’s holiest sites and is among the world’s leading oil exporters. Pakistan is the only nuclear-armed Muslim country.

Leaders’ visits

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Jeddah on Thursday with army chief Asim Munir and performed the Umrah pilgrimage in Mecca. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan departed for Jeddah on Friday.

They are due to meet Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi Arabia has been repeatedly struck by Iran, Tehran’s Houthi allies in Yemen and Shi’ite militia in Iraq since the war began on February 28.

Security concerns

The conflict has highlighted security vulnerabilities in Gulf states and disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas transited before the war.

The planned pact follows nearly a year of negotiations. Reuters reported in January that Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan had said Ankara favoured a broader regional security platform to promote cooperation and stability.

An existing Saudi-Pakistani agreement treats an attack on either country as an attack on both and includes “all military means”, a Saudi official previously told Reuters. Pakistan has sought to avoid becoming militarily involved in the Iran war and has instead tried to mediate with Iran.