The Makkah Defense Alliance was at the centre of fresh diplomatic exchanges this week, with Pakistan confirming on Sunday that it had discussed ways to deepen defence cooperation with Saudi Arabia and Turkiye under the trilateral pact. The discussions followed the inaugural meeting of the alliance’s Strategic, Political and Defense Committee, held in Istanbul late last month, and reflect continued efforts by the three countries to institutionalise the arrangement in the weeks since it was first signed.
Origins and Terms of the Makkah Defense Alliance
The Makkah Defense Alliance was signed in August against the backdrop of rising tensions in the Middle East, as the United States and Iran continued to trade fire and disrupt regional maritime routes. Under the terms of the pact, an armed attack against one member would be considered an attack against all three, a mutual defence clause that Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye have repeatedly stressed is defensive in nature rather than directed against any particular country.
At the alliance’s first Strategic Political and Defense Committee meeting in Istanbul, the three countries agreed to establish a permanent secretariat in Saudi Arabia, with the first secretary-general of the Makkah Defense Alliance coming from Pakistan for an initial three-year term. The countries also agreed to further institutionalise cooperation to strengthen collective deterrence and defence, including through joint development and production of defence technology and expanded defence industry cooperation. Turkiye separately indicated that the alliance could eventually expand to include other countries.
Pakistan Saudi Arabia Turkiye Defense Cooperation Advances Through Diplomatic Calls
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar held a telephone conversation on Sunday with Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, according to a statement from Pakistan’s foreign ministry. The two ministers exchanged views on regional and international developments and discussed follow-up on the understandings reached at the inaugural meeting of the Strategic Political and Defense Committee, agreeing to remain in close contact as the Pakistan Saudi Arabia Turkiye defense cooperation framework continues to take shape.
Dar separately spoke with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, and thanked him for hosting the inaugural committee meeting in Istanbul. According to Dar’s ministry, the two foreign ministers followed up on the understandings reached at the meeting and discussed ways to further advance cooperation under the Makkah accord, in addition to exchanging views on regional and international developments more broadly.
Strategic Political and Defense Committee Sets the Pact’s Direction
The Strategic Political and Defense Committee, whose inaugural session in Istanbul set much of the current agenda, is expected to serve as the primary mechanism through which Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye coordinate the alliance’s future direction. The decision to headquarter the permanent secretariat in Saudi Arabia, paired with Pakistan’s appointment to the alliance’s first secretary-general position, signals a deliberate effort to distribute institutional responsibility across the three member states from the outset.
As tensions between the United States and Iran continue to affect regional stability, the Makkah Defense Alliance is likely to remain a focal point of diplomatic activity among its three members in the coming months. With committee-level talks now underway and senior ministers maintaining direct contact, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye appear intent on translating the pact’s founding principles into concrete cooperation, even as questions remain over the pace of that institutionalisation and whether additional countries will eventually be invited to join.
Published in SouthAsianDesk, September 7th, 2026
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