Mecca: Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey on Friday signed a joint defence agreement bringing together Sunni Muslim-majority nations which are American amid the conflict in Middle East triggered by the war between US-Israel and Iran.
The ‘Mecca Joint Defence Agreement’ will deepen cooperation between the three countries at a time of growing security concerns with Iranian and its allies firing missiles on Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states, blockading their energy shipments in retaliation to attacks in Tehran and other cities.
According to the deal, an attack against one of the three countries will be regarded as an attack against them all.
“The Agreement is intended to strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggression, and stipulates that any armed attack against any one of the three States shall be regarded as an attack against them all. It further provides for the enhancement of all aspects of defence cooperation among the three States,” Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The agreement was signed during a meeting between Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Saudi Arabia.
Sharif and Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir arrived in Saudi Arabia for a three-day visit accompanied by a high-level delegation.
Islamabad has fostered close ties with Saudi Arabia for decades, with over 2.5 million of its nationals estimated to be living and working in the kingdom.
Last September, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia had signed a strategic defence pact, with the two sides saying that an attack on one country would be considered “an aggression against both”.
Pakistan is a nuclear-powered nation, Saudi Arabia is oil-rich, and Turkey has NATO’s second-largest army and a rapidly growing defence industry.
