The foreign and defense ministers and the chiefs of defense forces/chiefs of general staff of Türkiye, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia met in Istanbul on Monday in the Strategic Political and Defense Committee format established under the Mecca Agreement for Joint Defense, Turkiye’s Anadolu Agency reported. They issued a statement afterwards, announcing they had agreed to take steps to further institutionalize their cooperation under the Mecca Agreement for Joint Defense.
“Acting with a sense of regional ownership, the three countries reiterate their determination to work together within the framework of the Mecca Agreement to achieve sustainable peace and stability in their region,” the statement said. “To that end, they will continue to support efforts towards de-escalation and restraint to encourage peaceful resolution of crises,” it added. The three countries agreed to further institutionalize their cooperation “in a manner that would enhance their solidarity, ensure the credibility and effectiveness of their collective deterrence and defence, and contribute to the regional efforts and cooperative security towards a just, inclusive and lasting peace.”
“A Secretariat, headed by a Secretary General, will be established in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to support their work within the framework of the Mecca Agreement,” it said.
The Mecca defense agreement has launched a process to establish a “new security and cooperation architecture” in the region, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told reporters in a press conference afterwards. With this agreement, the process of testing a new security and cooperation architecture in our region has begun,” Fidan said. Regional countries urgently need to act together for security, stability, prosperity, and lasting peace, he added.
“The agreement is a product of the understanding of regional ownership. As we have always stated, attempts to bring solutions to our region from outside do not provide remedies to our problems; on the contrary, they can lead to heavy costs being paid,” he said.
Fidan said the agreement allows other countries to join the alliance, but discussions would be needed with both prospective members and existing members on the conditions, procedures, and standards for accession. He said work is underway on a roadmap for the accession process.
Fidan said the three countries agree on the need to build a strong and institutionalized structure capable of addressing challenges and bringing stability, peace and prosperity to the region, while also expanding the alliance over time.
“With a vision of a safe, stable, and prosperous future, this alliance is defense-based. The alliance is based on international law principles such as respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states and non-interference in their internal affairs. We want to emphasize once again here that the alliance is not against any state; on the contrary, it is open to all states in our region that adhere to these fundamental principles,” Fidan said.
