Türkiye’s Parliament to Review Trilateral Mutual Defence Pact

The trilateral defence pact between Türkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, also known as the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, has been submitted to Türkiye’s parliament for ratification.

Signed on August 7, the agreement contains 16 articles, according to the document reviewed by Reuters.

The pact seeks to establish a joint defence framework for the region, with provisions governing an armed attack on any of the three member states. Its articles set out the obligations and procedures that would apply in such a scenario.

Article 1 stipulates that the signatories should use “all necessary means” to eliminate threats to one another’s territorial integrity.

Once Article 1 is invoked following an attack on a member state, Article 2 outlines the response required.

“In the event one of the parties is subjected to an armed attack or military aggression by another country or group of countries, the parties shall immediately provide assistance to the party under attack, utilising the full range of mutual assistance measures available to them,” Article 2 states.

The provision is similar to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, NATO’s founding agreement, which treats an armed attack on one member state as an attack on all.

Article 2 also says that Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye will determine the scope and form of support after an objective assessment of the assistance required. The three countries would cooperate within their available resources, including their military capabilities.

Earlier this month, the three governments agreed to activate “deterrence measures” under the mutual defence pact and rapidly deploy forces to Saudi Arabia in response to attacks by Yemen’s Houthi movement, also known as Ansar Allah, meaning “Supporters of God” in Arabic.

Articles 3 through 6 address defence-industry cooperation, intelligence sharing, logistical support, joint training and action against “all means of terrorism,” including operational measures.

Other provisions cover joint research, development and innovation projects in advanced technology, as well as measures to maintain military readiness.

The agreement also provides for the creation of a defence committee comprising the foreign and defence ministers of all three signatory states.

Other countries may seek to join the pact, but their admission would require the approval of all three founding members.

The agreement will remain in force for 10 years, after which any party may withdraw in accordance with the draft submitted to parliament.

The ratification process

Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar said ratification was likely to take “quite some time,” even though the ruling coalition has a simple majority in parliament.

“The various political parties represented in the Turkish parliament are going to discuss the provisions in the pact, and we could witness heated debates because the opposition has its own objectives,” he said.

Serdar noted that ratification would not automatically result in the deployment of Turkish troops, as any such deployment would require separate legislative procedures.

Türkiye’s parliamentary speaker will refer the agreement to the parliament’s foreign affairs commission. According to a source familiar with the process who spoke to Reuters, the commission could begin debating it as early as Friday.

The agreement’s contents and details are expected to be made public once it has been submitted to the commission.

“This strategic partnership developed between our countries aims to strengthen collective deterrence, enhance joint capabilities in the defence sector, and safeguard security and stability in our region,” Burhanettin Duran, the Turkish presidency’s communications director, said on X.

Duran added that the process represented an important step toward the “institutionalisation” of strategic cooperation among the three countries.

A “ring of fire”

On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the escalating violence between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthis.

“As I often say, we are surrounded by a ring of fire. That is exactly the situation we face,” Erdogan said while referring to Houthi attacks on Riyadh airport.

In recent weeks, the Houthis have launched missile and drone attacks against Saudi Arabia, targeting oil facilities and the kingdom’s main airport in Riyadh. A Saudi-led coalition supporting the Yemeni government has responded with airstrikes on Houthi positions.

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