Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have signed a joint defence agreement aimed at strengthening security cooperation among the three countries amid heightened regional military tensions and conflicts.
The agreement was signed in Makkah on August 7 by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Under the agreement, an armed attack against any one of the three countries will be regarded as an attack against all three. The pact also calls for enhanced defence cooperation and stronger collective security.
The agreement builds on the longstanding defence relationships between the three countries and establishes a broader framework for cooperation. Officials have described the agreement as defensive in nature and said it does not designate any country as a common adversary.
The three countries are also expected to develop mechanisms involving defence and foreign ministers and military chiefs to coordinate security policies. Cooperation is expected to include joint military exercises, defence industry collaboration, technology cooperation and joint development and production.
Unmanned and autonomous systems, electronic warfare and artificial intelligence capabilities have been identified as areas for expanded cooperation, alongside maintenance, logistics and other defence capabilities.
The agreement brings together Türkiye’s defence-industrial capabilities, Pakistan’s military expertise and Saudi Arabia’s resources and regional position. The three countries have also indicated that the framework could support further defence-industrial cooperation and the development of domestic capabilities.
The pact represents a further expansion of security cooperation between Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan, following earlier bilateral defence arrangements and discussions on strengthening defence and technology cooperation.
