Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Saturday pushed back against speculation that the newly announced defense pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan is designed to counter Iran, insisting the agreement is not directed at any particular nation. Speaking to Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency, Fidan emphasized that the pact, which has been in the works for two years, predates the current conflict in Iran and is purely defensive in nature.
“We don't have anything written down, nothing we've signed, that defines a common threat. Any country that does not attack us is not a target for us,” Fidan said in the interview, which took place a day after the three nations unveiled the so-called “Mecca Joint Defense Agreement.” The accord, which mirrors NATO's Article 5 collective defense clause, stipulates that an armed attack on any one of the three states will be treated as an attack on all.
The agreement combines Saudi Arabia's oil wealth, Pakistan's nuclear capability, and Turkey's military strength—the second-largest in NATO—to bolster collective deterrence. A joint statement from the three countries said the pact is intended to “strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggression” and enhance defense cooperation across all dimensions.
Fidan noted that the alliance will hold regular meetings in Saudi Arabia involving military and foreign policy officials, and that a secretariat has yet to be established. He also underscored that the agreement is not a formal treaty but a framework for cooperation, with no written common threat definition.
The formation of the pact comes amid heightened tensions in the region, particularly following recent attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels on Saudi naval vessels in the southern Red Sea. These attacks have disrupted one of the key alternate shipping routes that emerged after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which occurred as the U.S.-Iran conflict dragged into its sixth month. Saudi Arabia's defense ministry has drawn Turkey and Pakistan into its multinational maritime coalition, which already includes 12 other countries.
The new alliance is likely to be tested, as Saudi Arabia's energy infrastructure has increasingly come under Iranian attack. In late July, the U.S. military reported shooting down an Iranian missile barrage and coordinating with Saudi forces to strike militia positions used by Tehran-backed groups.
Fidan, however, downplayed the idea that the pact is a direct response to these incidents. He said the agreement had been under preparation long before the current war in Iran, and that its purpose is to enhance collective defense, not to single out any state.
Despite the broad scope of the agreement, Fidan acknowledged that regional security concerns are intertwined with national interests. “The closure of the Red Sea trade basin is, of course, a matter directly related to our interests,” he said, referencing the economic and strategic impact of disrupted shipping lanes.
The announcement of the pact has drawn attention from analysts who see it as a significant realignment in Middle Eastern defense dynamics, potentially shifting the balance of power in a region already fraught with proxy conflicts and great-power competition. As the alliance takes shape, its effectiveness in deterring aggression—and its implications for Iran—will be closely watched.
