Erdogan: Mecca Alliance is a Guarantee of Regional Stability
The Turkish president says the trilateral defense pact is an important step toward strengthening peace, stability and collective security at the regional and international levels.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Tuesday that the Mecca Defense Alliance represents an important step toward achieving peace and stability at both the regional and international levels, as Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan move to deepen defense cooperation.
Speaking during an address on Tuesday, Erdogan said the alliance was founded on the principles of regional ownership and collective response, describing it as an important framework for strengthening cooperation in pursuit of peace and stability.
“The Mecca alliance for collective defense, which is founded on the basis of regional ownership and collective response, provides important cooperation toward achieving peace and stability in the region and the world,” Erdogan said.
In a joint statement issued Monday by the Strategic Political and Defense Committee of the Mecca Agreement, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye said they would work through joint activities to strengthen their defense capabilities and the cohesion of their armed forces.
The three countries said their cooperation would be supported by “strong cooperation in the field of the military industry and the development of joint production and technology.”
The statement comes as the three countries deepen their defense coordination under the agreement signed in Mecca.
On Aug. 7, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed a joint defense agreement in Mecca.
The agreement forms part of a defense cooperation framework aimed at strengthening the parties’ commitment to protecting peace, stability and development at the regional and international levels.
It is based on the sharing of responsibilities and a common understanding of the concept of security.
The agreement's central objective is to strengthen collective deterrence against any attack or aggression. It stipulates that an armed attack against any one of the three countries would be regarded as an attack against all parties.
The framework places collective defense and coordinated responses at the center of the trilateral partnership as the three countries seek to strengthen their military and defense cooperation.