Iran said it has not been invited to join the new Mecca Defence Pact between Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, and Pakistan, but noted proposals have been made for discussions on regional security. The pact is for collective deterrence in West Asia.
Iran Responds to Mecca Pact Exclusion
Iran on Monday signaled that while it has not received an invitation to join the Saudi Arabia-Turkiye-Pakistan led Mecca Agreement, proposals have been made for discussions on regional security issues. The remarks were made by Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baqaei during a press conference today. He said, “We have not received an invitation to join the Mecca Pact, but proposals have been made for discussions with these countries regarding regional security.”
Details of the Trilateral Defence Pact
The Mecca Defence Pact was signed on August 7 by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Mecca. It seeks to strengthen defence cooperation and collective deterrence among the three countries.
According to the summit statement, an armed attack against any one of the three signatories would be regarded as an attack against all three. While the pact does not specify detailed operational or military commitments, it establishes a framework for enhanced defence cooperation and identifies peace, stability and security in the region and beyond as its broader objectives.
The pact was concluded amid heightened tensions and conflicts across West Asia, with the region facing multiple security challenges and growing geopolitical uncertainty. Also in August, while addressing the newly formed trilateral defence pact between Pakistan, Turkiye, and Saudi Arabia, Baqaei had stated that the agreement signals a fundamental shift in regional perception, proving that Middle Eastern nations have realised “security is not a commodity that can be purchased from false security brokers”.
Pact Faces Scrutiny After Houthi Attack
The grouping, however, appears to have failed its first major test after the Iran-backed Houthi rebels from Yemen struck an Aramco refinery in Jazan, with the newly formed alliance offering no visible military response or threat to the attack, said an analysis written in the Jerusalem Post. (ANI)
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