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Türkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have formally adopted their first institutional decisions under a trilateral defense pact signed last month, agreeing to name the grouping the "Mecca Defense Alliance" and to base its secretariat in Saudi Arabia, officials announced Monday.
The announcement came after the first meeting of the Strategic Political and Defense Committee, held at Istanbul's Ciragan Palace under the framework of the Mecca Agreement for Joint Defense, which the three countries signed in Mecca on Aug. 7. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said the gathering marked the start of a new phase in regional security cooperation.
"With this agreement, the process of testing a new security and cooperation architecture in our region has begun," Fidan told a news conference following the talks.
Fidan said the three countries had settled on the alliance's official name and agreed that its secretariat would be established in Riyadh, with a Pakistani official serving as its first secretary-general.
A joint statement issued after the meeting said the secretariat, to be headed by a secretary-general, would initially be led by a Pakistani national for a three-year term.
"As of today, we have also begun work to establish the institutional structure envisaged by the agreement.
First of all, we agreed on the official name of our alliance," Fidan said, adding that further preliminary decisions were reached on the timing and sequencing of the alliance's institutionalization.
The joint statement said the three countries would work "in a manner that would enhance their solidarity, ensure the credibility and effectiveness of their collective deterrence and defence, and contribute to the regional efforts and cooperative security towards a just, inclusive and lasting peace."
It added that the countries would strengthen defense capabilities and military cohesion through joint activities, including defense industry cooperation and joint technology development and production.
Monday's session brought together the foreign ministers, defense ministers and military chiefs of all three countries. Türkiye was represented by Fidan, National Defense Minister Yasar Guler and Chief of General Staff Gen. Selcuk Bayraktaroglu.
Pakistan's delegation included Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif and army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir. Saudi Arabia was represented by Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan, Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman and Chief of General Staff Gen. Fayyadh bin Hamed Al Ruwaili.
Fidan credited President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with leading the process that produced the original agreement, calling it a "historic step based on regional ownership."
"As we have always stated, attempts to bring solutions to our region from outside do not provide remedies to our problems, on the contrary, they can lead to heavy costs being paid," he said.
The Mecca Agreement for Joint Defense was signed in the Saudi holy city on Aug. 7 by Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The pact commits each signatory to treat an armed attack on any one of the three as an attack on all.
Fidan said the alliance was designed to grow beyond its three founding members, though he cautioned that its institutional foundations needed to be firmly established first. "The alliance was established with the aim of expanding.
But at the outset, its foundations need to be laid very well, and its institutionalization also needs to be carried out very well," he said, adding that work was underway on a roadmap governing how new members could accede.
He said the alliance was not aimed at any particular country. "The alliance is based on international law principles such as respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states and non-interference in their internal affairs," Fidan said, adding that it remained "open to all states in our region that adhere to these fundamental principles."
Fidan also said the pact would not alter Türkiye's commitments under NATO, of which Türkiye has been a member since 1952.
"The alliance does not eliminate or replace our country's obligations arising from NATO in particular and other alliances and agreements. It is complementary to all of them," he said.
Asked about remarks in which Israel has described Türkiye as a strategic threat, Fidan said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his supporters had stepped up rhetoric targeting Türkiye and Erdogan ahead of Israeli elections.
He called Netanyahu a "criminal" and "perpetrator of genocide," saying his approach endangered not only Türkiye but the wider region and international security. "The international system must fight against this threat, this Netanyahu threat," Fidan said.
On the alliance's broader purpose, Fidan argued that a lack of trust among regional states had allowed local disputes to draw in outside powers.
"When the countries in the region come together, respect each other's sovereignty, territorial integrity and security, and make commitments to this effect... there will no longer be a problem in terms of regional trust and alliance relations," he said, adding that he believed "85-90%" of the region's problems could be resolved if states committed sincerely to those principles.
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Fidan also addressed threats to shipping in the Black Sea, saying continued attacks on commercial vessels were undermining both regional and global food security.
He said Türkiye had prepared a study and was in contact with the relevant parties, working toward a possible new agreement modeled on the earlier Black Sea Grain Initiative, which had allowed Ukrainian and Russian grain exports to resume during the war between the two countries.
Fidan additionally offered condolences over the deaths of victims after a passenger ship capsized off Girne Port in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, wishing a speedy recovery to those injured.
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