Pakistan-Saudi Arabia-Turkiye Defence Alliance Moves Towards Implementation

ISTANBUL: The Pakistan-Saudi Arabia-Turkiye defence partnership is moving towards the implementation stage, with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan expressing satisfaction over progress under the trilateral arrangement.

Fidan said the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement was progressing positively and that Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye remained committed to putting the defence agreement into practice.

The Turkish foreign minister said the three countries had already reached an understanding on the institutional structure of the agreement, including arrangements for a secretariat and military headquarters.

He said the joint military headquarters under the agreement was nearing activation.

Fidan added that personnel would soon be appointed to the operational headquarters as the three countries moved towards establishing the alliance’s military structure.

The development follows the signing of the trilateral defence agreement by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye in August 2026. The agreement provides for collective defence, including the principle that an armed attack against one member would be regarded as an attack against all three.

The first committee meeting under the agreement was subsequently held in Istanbul, bringing together senior political, defence and military officials from the three countries.

The latest comments from Fidan indicate that the three countries are now focusing on developing the institutional and operational mechanisms required to implement the defence arrangement.