Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan have signed a joint defence agreement, known as the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, pledging mutual defence guarantees. The pact was announced on August 7, 2026, during a meeting in the Saudi city of Mecca attended by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The agreement stipulates that any armed attack against any one of the three states shall be regarded as an attack against all, aiming to strengthen collective deterrence against aggression. It also provides for enhanced defence cooperation, including joint production, technology partnerships, procurement, and greater military interoperability.

This development comes amid heightened conflict in the Middle East. After the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, 2026, Tehran and its allies retaliated by striking targets in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states and disrupting traffic through key oil shipping routes such as the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea. Additionally, Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels, controlling much of north-west Yemen, announced a maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia and targeted Saudi airports, oil facilities, and tankers in the Red Sea.

Saudi Arabia and Pakistan had previously announced a joint defence pact last year. According to Burcu Ozcelik of the London-based Royal United Services Institute, the new deal offers opportunities for defence industries through enhanced cooperation.

The Mecca agreement has drawn criticism from Tehran. Ebrahim Rezaei, a member of Iran's National Security Commission, wrote on his X account that "a paper agreement with Turkey and Pakistan does not bring [Saudi Arabia] security, just as years of unilateral milking of the Americans did not bring them security."

According to a report by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, Gulf states have recalibrated their defence strategies in response to the evolving regional security environment.

Sources