Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan? “Immediately” Defence Agreement

ANDm reported, the Saudi ministry said that the chiefs of the General Staff of the three countries met in Riyadh, where they stated “the joint determination to immediately begin transforming the commitments set out in the Joint Defence Agreement of Mecca into effective military cooperation”.

The agreement, signed at a time when Riyadh is the target of attacks by Yemeni rebels Huthis supported by Iran, states that any attack on one of the countries is an aggression against the three.

According to images released by the Saudi government, the Chiefs of Staff attended the meeting in front of military delegations from the three countries, which stressed “the strength of their defence partnership” and “they firmly reaffirmed their commitment to collective defense.”.

In addition, they emphasized “the determination of the three countries to defend the security, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” which has been the target since late July of attacks with Huthis missiles and drones, rebels who also impose a maritime blockade on the Red Sea.

According to the Saudi statement, the meeting focused on “the security situation and threats faced by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia” and condemned in particular the attacks on the Huthis against the city of Mecca and the civil and energy infrastructure of the Arab monarchy.

The Saudi authorities stated on September 15 that they shot down a drone launched by Yemeni rebels against Mecca — the most important site in Islam.

Despite claiming dozens of other actions against Saudi Arabia, Iran's allied Shia movement did not take responsibility for the attack.

The three countries also discussed ways to advance cooperation between their armed forces, information exchange, military coordination and capacity integration to “improve deterrence and collective defense,” the statement pointed out, without further details.

The meeting was announced yesterday, after talks in New York, off 81. the UN General Assembly, among the Foreign Ministers of the three countries: Faisal bin Farhan, Saudi Arabia; Ishaq Dar, Pakistan; and Hakan Fidan, Turkey.

The tripartite agreement was signed on 7 August at Mecca by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Saudi Arabia is OPEC's largest oil producer and Huthis attacks have contributed to the rise in oil prices on the international market.