Turkey joins Saudi and Pakistan in ‘Mecca Pact’ hedge against US defence reliability

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif pose after signing a joint defence agreement in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Aug 7.

PHOTO: REUTERS

Published Aug 09, 2026, 06:00 PM

Updated Aug 09, 2026, 06:17 PM

LONDON – The signing of a joint defence agreement between Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan marks an important development in the order of the Middle East.

When Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif put their names to the agreement on Aug 7, they pledged that “an armed attack against any one of the three shall be regarded as an attack against them all”.

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