So, how does Tehran see the trilateral defense agreement signed by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in Mecca last week? Ebrahim Rezaei, a member of Iran’s parliamentary National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, was highly critical of the agreement after it was announced on Saturday. “The Saudis should know that a paper agreement with Turkey and Pakistan does not bring them security, just as years of unilateral milking of the Americans did not bring them security,” he reportedly wrote on X.
At the Iranian Foreign Ministry, spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told reporters this morning, the trilateral agreement could be viewed as an indication of a shift in the way countries in the region perceive security. He noted that Iran has consistently called on regional countries to cooperate and strengthen their own security without relying on foreign actors, stressing that the latest development should be taken into consideration.
Baqaei said regional countries had, particularly since the start of the genocide in Gaza and Israeli attacks three years ago, increasingly recognized the source of the greatest threat to stability and security in the region and beyond. He pointed to Israel’s attacks on Lebanon, Palestine and Syria, as well as its threats against other countries in the region, saying such developments have strengthened the understanding that regional states can no longer rely on the U.S. claims to provide security.
Baqaei also said the U.S. itself has contributed to insecurity in the region, arguing that the Israeli regime could not have carried out its actions without American support. He stressed Iran’s view that regional security is indivisible, saying that any initiative that correctly identifies the enemy and the threat could contribute to strengthening security.
