Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan to Hold First Defence Pact Meeting, Source Says

Istanbul: Top officials from Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan will gather in Istanbul on Monday for a first committee meeting under ​the joint defence accord that they signed this month, a ‌Turkish foreign ministry source said.

The "Mecca Joint Defence Agreement", signed on August 7, brought together Sunni Muslim U.S. allies concerned by the Iran war and regional conflict that ​has led to Iranian missile fire on Gulf oil exporters.

It ​is intended to strengthen collective deterrence against any act ⁠of aggression and stipulates that an armed attack against any of ​the three would be regarded as an attack on all, similar to NATO's ​Article 5 collective defence clause.

Foreign and defence ministers, as well as the chiefs of staff, of the three countries will attend the meeting in Istanbul, the ​ministry source said.

"International security issues will be on the agenda," the ​source said, with discussions expected to cover enhancing defence capabilities, greater interoperability among their ‌armed ⁠forces and deepening cooperation in the defence industry, including joint production and development.

The three nations share concerns about the military stances of Israel and revolutionary Shi'ite Iran, as long-time ally the U.S. struggles to ​contain regional upheaval ​that has caused ⁠a global energy crisis.

Six months after the U.S. and Israel launched the war against Iran, negotiations are at ​an impasse and President Donald Trump's administration has stepped ​up efforts ⁠to punish Iran financially with what it has billed as an "economic D-Day".

Turkey, which has NATO's second-largest military, has said the pact with nuclear-armed Pakistan ⁠and top ​oil exporter Saudi Arabia was open ​to expansion — with Egypt as a potential candidate — and did not seek to replace existing ​alliances.

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