Makkah Defence Alliance Holds First Meeting, Pakistan Gets Key Role
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye have taken a major step toward institutionalising their new trilateral defence arrangement, holding the first meeting of the committee established under the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement in Istanbul on Monday. Senior foreign, defence and military officials from all three countries participated as the partners began shaping the alliance's political, security and military framework.
Pakistan was represented at the high-level gathering by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and Chief of Defence Forces and Army Chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir. Senior Turkish and Saudi officials also attended, bringing together the three countries' diplomatic and defence leadership for the first formal committee session since the agreement was signed earlier in August.
Following the meeting, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced that the trilateral arrangement would formally be known as the Makkah Defence Alliance. He said work had begun on establishing its institutional structure and confirmed that the alliance's first secretary-general would be selected from Pakistan. A secretariat is being established in Riyadh, giving the three partners a permanent mechanism through which future cooperation can be coordinated.
Fidan said the alliance was designed to promote regional peace, stability and security and was not directed against any particular country. Participants discussed regional and international security developments, ways to strengthen collective defence capabilities and measures to improve coordination among the armed forces. Cooperation in defence production, research and development and counterterrorism also formed part of the discussions.
The three countries signed the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement on August 7. A central provision establishes a collective defence commitment under which an armed attack against one member would be regarded as an attack against all three. The first Istanbul meeting therefore represents the transition from the political signing of the pact toward the creation of practical institutions and mechanisms for implementing its commitments.
The development gives Pakistan a prominent role in the emerging framework. Appointment of a Pakistani as the first secretary-general would place Islamabad directly within the alliance's initial institutional leadership, while closer military coordination with Saudi Arabia and Türkiye could expand opportunities for defence cooperation, joint training, technology collaboration and defence-industrial partnerships. Pakistan has longstanding strategic and military relationships with both countries, providing an existing foundation for deeper trilateral coordination.
The meeting also addressed the possibility of eventually expanding the arrangement. Fidan said work was underway on a roadmap covering how additional countries could potentially join the alliance. Any expansion would increase the regional significance of the pact and could broaden discussions about collective security cooperation among participating states.
The next phase is expected to focus on building the alliance's secretariat, defining institutional responsibilities and implementing decisions taken by the Strategic Political and Defence Committee. Further meetings between political and military officials are likely as Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye translate the agreement into operational structures and determine how cooperation on defence capabilities, industry and regional security will function in practice.