Turkish Parliament Approves Joint Defense Pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan

The Turkish Parliament’s General Assembly approved a bill ratifying the Mecca Agreement on Joint Defense among Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan. Following the conclusion of debates during the parliamentary session, the General Assembly put the bill to a vote and approved it. During the discussion of the bill’s provisions, Deputy Ziya Altunaydız of the Justice and Development Party, representing the province of Konya, stated that the agreement aims to enhance regional security cooperation. He emphasized that the agreement does not target any third country and that its primary objective is to prevent conflicts rather than expand them. This follows the approval last week by the Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee of a bill to ratify the aforementioned agreement. On August 7, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed the Mecca Agreement on Joint Defense. The agreement aims to strengthen the security of the three countries through deterrence and joint defense, within a framework endorsed by the three nations to support regional security and stability.