Turkiye lays out ‘mechanisms’ of defence pact with Pakistan, Saudi Arabia

Three nations to group ministers, hold ⁠joint exercises and deepen defence industry cooperation under the pact signed last week.Turkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan will group senior ministers, hold ⁠joint exercises and deepen defence industry cooperation under a military pact signed between the regional powers last week, Turkiye’s defence ministry says.The three countries on August 7 signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement on August 7, which stipulates that an armed attack against any member would be regarded as ‌an attack on all, similar to NATO’s Article 5 collective defence clause.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4What are Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan’s joint military capabilities?list 2 of 4Where does Iran stand on Saudi-Pakistan-Turkiye pact?list 3 of 4Which other countries could join the Turkiye-Saudi-Pakistan defence pact?list 4 of 4The Mecca pact is not just another regional allianceend of listAt a weekly briefing in Ankara on Thursday, the Turkish defence ministry said the pact’s fundamental goal was to ensure defence and military ties were put on a “more institutional and sustainable” footing.“Under the accord, strategic political and military mechanisms plan to be established involving the Defence Ministers, Foreign Ministers, and Chiefs of General ⁠Staff/Armed Forces Commanders, and that coordination among the three countries will ⁠be conducted at the highest level,” it said.The ministry added that joint military exercises involving land, naval and air forces, as well as air defence and unmanned systems were planned, in ⁠addition to deeper defence industry cooperation.“The aim is to provide not only product and system supply, but also joint ⁠development and production, technology cooperation, and sustainable maintenance and ⁠logistics support,” it said, adding that unmanned and autonomous systems, electronic warfare and Artificial Intelligence capabilities would be prioritised.Turkiye, which has NATO’s second-largest army, has said the pact with nuclear-armed Pakistan and top oil ‌exporter Saudi Arabia was open to expansion — with Egypt as a potential candidate — and did not seek to replace any existing alliances.