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Iran's Foreign Ministry denied Monday that it had received a formal invitation to join the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, a day after the Al Mayadeen news network reported that Iran had received such an invitation and was reviewing the proposal.
The denial came during the ministry's weekly press briefing, held Monday, when a reporter asked the spokesperson to confirm or deny the Al Mayadeen report.
Asked about the report, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said Iran had not received a formal invitation but that proposals for dialogue with the countries involved had been raised regarding collective regional security issues.
"We have not received a formal invitation, but proposals have been raised for dialogue with these countries on matters related to collective security in the region," Baghaei noted.
The spokesperson separately said Iran has no reason to believe the Mecca agreement is targeted against it, adding that regional countries have concluded that Washington's only concern is preserving what Tehran characterizes as the illegitimate interests of Israel in the region.
Al Mayadeen had reported Sunday that Tehran received a formal invitation to join the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement between Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan, citing Mehdi Rahimi, head of the Iranian parliament's news agency.
"The proposal is currently being reviewed by the Iranian leadership," Rahimi was quoted as saying by Al Mayadeen.
Rahimi said the creation of a "regional security umbrella," which he said Iran had long sought, would represent a win for the Islamic Republic.
The Mecca agreement was signed Aug. 7 by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at a summit held at Al-Safa Palace.
The pact provides for strengthened collective deterrence, with an armed attack on one member state treated as an attack on all three countries. It also allows for expanded military cooperation, coordination and joint defense industry projects.
According to Turkish officials, the agreement is a defense-oriented cooperation arrangement that targets no country and is designed to strengthen commitments to regional and global peace, stability and prosperity through burden-sharing and a common security approach.
Speaking in an interview with Al Jazeera Arabic recorded Aug. 14, President Erdogan said the Mecca agreement represented "a different kind of transformation."
"The signing of this trilateral agreement in Mecca between Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan became an opportunity for us to deliver an important message to the world," President Erdogan said, adding, "The fact that this agreement was concluded in Mecca and that we achieved it as three countries gave us additional strength and conveyed a separate message to the world."
He said the pact was signed during a difficult period in relations between the U.S. and Iran and that it conveyed an important message for world peace.
"I call it an important message for world peace because Türkiye is a country that stands for peace, and the choice of Mecca has been an important step for peace," he said, noting, "During the process between Iran and the U.S., we consistently emphasized that we support peace."
Asked whether the agreement resembles NATO's Article 5 collective defense provision, President Erdogan said the three countries would have the opportunity to take necessary steps together if any of them came under attack.
"Whether it concerns Türkiye, Saudi Arabia or Pakistan, if any one of these three countries comes under attack, because this is a common defense pact, the three countries will have the opportunity to defend one another against any such attack," he said.
Erdogan said the agreement remains open to additional members, including Egypt if it wished to join. "Beyond these three countries, others may join us at any time. It is not limited to Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan."
U.S. President Donald Trump also welcomed the signing of the agreement in a post on his Truth Social platform.
"Very happy to see that Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan have recently, and finally, signed the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement," Trump wrote.
"It shows how the Middle East is coming together, and how countries will finally be able to defend themselves in a more meaningful way. Congratulations to the Great Leadership of the three nations mentioned. THIS IS A BIG, BOLD, AND IMPORTANT FIRST STEP, WOW!"
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