Mecca defence alliance launched in Istanbul 'to reduce uncertainty' in region

Top officials from the countries party to the historic "Mecca Joint Defence Agreement" convened in Turkey today (31 August) on the occasion of the first meeting of the strategic, political and defence committee established to advance the deal, reports Daily Sabah. 

Speaking after the meeting, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said they decided to name the alliance the "Mecca Defence Alliance". He said the first secretary-general of the alliance would be a Pakistani official and the secretariat's offices would be based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He emphasised that the alliance would "reduce uncertainty and instability" in the region.

Along with Fidan, the meeting was attended by Turkey's Defence Minister, Yasar Guler and Chief of the General Staff General Selçuk Bayraktaroglu; Pakistan's Foreign Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Federal Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif and Chief of the Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir; Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan, Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman and Chief of the General Staff General Fayyadh bin Hamed Al Ruwaili.

In response to questions, Fidan said they were open to expansion, underlining that its main purpose was to include more countries. 

As the news of the alliance circulated, speculation was rife that it was squarely aimed at deterring Iran amid the US-Iran war that spilled into US allies in the region. The three countries rejected this but underlined that an attack on one country party to the agreement would be deemed as an attack on all.

Fidan also clarified that the alliance did not contradict Turkey's membership of Nato.

Who else might join?

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said the pact remains open to other states.

Dar said on 9 August that the agreement was defensive in nature and did not replace any existing bilateral or multilateral arrangement, reported Al Jazeera.

Turkish officials have earlier stated that they were open to expanding the alliance to include other countries, particularly Egypt.

Bangladesh has gone furthest in publicly signalling interest. State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humayun Kabir said Dhaka has expressed interest in the pact and it would not be unusual for an Islamic country to join such an arrangement.

Egypt has taken part in earlier four-way security talks with Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan but did not participate in the 7 August signing.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty has since said Cairo is weighing constitutional and legal issues before deciding whether to join, a reference widely read as touching on Egypt's existing treaty commitments elsewhere in the region.

Within the Gulf Cooperation Council, former Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani has publicly urged all six of its states to join.