From left, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif pose after signing a trilateral defence agreement in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Friday, August 7, 2026. (Credit: AFP)
Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said Sunday that the trilateral Mecca defence agreement signed by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan is “purely” defensive in nature and is not directed against any country.
In a statement posted on X, Dar said the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement aims to strengthen the three countries’ efforts toward peace, stability and prosperity across the region.
The agreement, signed Friday in Mecca, stipulates that an armed attack against any one of the three countries will be considered an attack against all three.
Dar said the pact remains open to other countries in the region that are willing to uphold its principles and resolve differences through “mutual respect, cooperation and peaceful means”.
He reiterated that the agreement considers any external armed attack on one of the three countries an attack on all, in line with their right to individual and collective self-defense under Article 51 of the U.N. Charter.
The pact does not replace or cancel any existing bilateral or multilateral agreements between the three countries, or between them and other countries or organizations, Dar added.
