Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan have signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, declaring that an armed attack on any one of them will be treated as an attack on all three. The pact strengthens security ties among three major Muslim-majority states amid heightened regional instability following the US and Israeli attacks on Iran and subsequent Iranian-allied strikes on Gulf targets. Its practical importance remains uncertain because the agreement does not specify what military obligations each country would assume.

Saudi Arabia seeks additional protection after attacks by Iran-backed Houthis and wider concerns about the Gulf’s changing security order, while Pakistan gains closer links to Saudi economic power and Turkish military-industrial capabilities after recent tensions with India. Turkey could benefit through defence exports, joint production, technology partnerships and greater military interoperability. Tehran criticised the deal, arguing that it would not provide Saudi Arabia with real security; Saudi Arabia and Pakistan had already announced a bilateral defence pact the previous year.