RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan signed a defense agreement on Friday, solidifying cooperation between the three regional powers at a time of growing security concerns and amid threats from the Iran war.\u00a0"The agreement is intended to strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggression, and stipulates that any armed attack against any one of the three states shall be regarded as an attack against them all," the Pakistani Foreign Ministry and Turkey\u0027s presidential communications directorate said in identical statements."It further provides for the enhancement of all aspects of defense cooperation among the three States," the statements said, adding the agreement was called the "Mecca Joint Defense Agreement." \u00a0The agreement was signed in the Saudi holy city of Mecca during a meeting between Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Shari. It brings together three Sunni Muslim-majority states: oil-rich Saudi Arabia, nuclear power Pakistan and Turkey \u2014 a country that has NATO\u0027s second-largest army and a rapidly growing defense industry.Turkish media reports had said it is likely to allow joint military exercises and training, technology transfers and the sharing of intelligence. A Turkish government official described the agreement as "purely defensive in nature," saying the sides have pledged mutual support only for defense.The official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the issue publicly, insisted the deal is "not against any specific actor," and was open for other regional countries to join.A Saudi official said it "does not represent an effort to establish a military axis or a sectarian bloc," and it is not linked to any nuclear ambitions or arms race. Instead, "it is focused on building sustainable capabilities," Deputy Minister for Public Diplomacy Rayed Krimly said Friday in a post on X. The agreement does not abrogate or replace any bilateral or multilateral agreements between these states or with other states and organizations, according to the Turkish government official.In September, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a mutual defense pact that also defines any attack on either nation as an attack on both. In Islamabad, defense analyst Abdullah Khan described the new agreement as a natural evolution and formalization of decades of strategic ties among Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, saying a changing regional security environment and the evolving nature of warfare had increased the need for closer cooperation.
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