Pakistan completes Mecca defense pact vote
Islamabad and Riyadh have finalized ratification of the three-nation agreement, leaving Turkey as the only signatory still in its domestic approval process.
By Ahmed Peterson ·
Working families in Pakistan can now count on a formal defense shield with two major regional powers. On Friday, the country announced it had finished the legal steps to join a joint defense pact with Saudi Arabia and Turkey. The move locks in a collective security commitment that was signed on 7 August in Mecca.
Foreign Office spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan confirmed that both Islamabad and Riyadh have completed their ratification procedures. He stated that matters related to the agreement, its ratification, and operationalization remain under discussion by the three parties. This finalizes the domestic legal framework for the deal on the Pakistani side.
Turkey is still working through its own domestic approval process. Because of this, the agreement has not yet been fully ratified by all three signatories. The pact was signed by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. It mandates collective defense if any of the three states faces an external armed attack.
The path to implementation accelerated after a 5 October meeting of the Strategic Political and Defence Committee. Participants agreed that military forces and capabilities should be deployed rapidly in Saudi Arabia when needed. This deployment is subject to each country's domestic laws and aims to provide swift support during crises.
The announcement arrives as Saudi Arabia faces renewed security threats from Yemen's Houthis. Civil Defence issued warnings this week about possible danger in Abha and Khamis Mushait in the southwest. Authorities later said the danger had passed but did not specify the nature of the threat. Reuters reported on 21 October that Riyadh's allies are mainly offering defensive support to protect infrastructure.
Regional tensions are rising elsewhere as well. The Israeli military announced large-scale exercises in the north and center of the country for Sunday and Monday. These drills involve the air force and units from the Northern and Central Commands. They rehearse scenarios of surprise air and land attacks to test readiness against multiple fronts.
Washington and Tel Aviv are reportedly weighing renewed military action against Iran. President Trump said on Friday that the United States might carry out another operation as the conflict nears its eighth month. A report citing US officials indicated that plans for fresh strikes are being drawn up after the US midterm elections on 3 November. Potential targets include Iranian energy infrastructure, nuclear facilities, and missile and drone capabilities.
Source: Middle East Eye
