Mecca Joint Defence Agreement: From an Idea to a Concept, from a Concept to an Agreement

The “Mecca Joint Defence Agreement,” signed in Jeddah on August 7, 2026, between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Republic of Türkiye, and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, has emerged as a historic agreement that goes far beyond a mutual defense understanding initially reached among the three core countries and constitutes a precursor to a major alliance and integration process in the Islamic World.

In the joint statement issued regarding the agreement, it was stated that Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, President of the Republic of Türkiye Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif signed the Mutual Defense Agreement, reflecting their shared will, based on the deep historical relations, longstanding bonds of brotherhood and Islamic solidarity, common strategic interests, and established defense cooperation among the three states, to further strengthen their collective security, promote peace, security, and stability in the region and beyond, and jointly build a secure and prosperous future.

The agreement aims to strengthen collective deterrence against all forms of aggression and stipulates that an armed attack against any one of the three states shall be considered an attack against all of them. The agreement also provides for the development of defense cooperation among the three states in all its dimensions.

In a post on his Nsosyal account, President Erdoğan, in addition to the statements contained in the joint declaration, stated: “The agreement, which also reaffirms the right of self-defense as defined in Article 51 of the UN Charter, does not target any country and is open to the participation of all brotherly countries that seek the peace, prosperity, and stability of our region. In line with the vision of regional ownership, Türkiye will resolutely continue its principled stance aimed at resolving conflicts and crises through dialogue and diplomacy on the basis of respect for international law.”

From a NATO-Like Alliance to an EU-Like Integration…

The emphasis in the agreement on the deep historical relations, longstanding bonds of brotherhood, and Islamic solidarity among the allied countries demonstrates that the alliance established will not remain limited to the military dimension. The agreement should be viewed as a harbinger of a much larger partnership encompassing political, economic, and cultural spheres among the founding countries of the alliance and the countries that will subsequently join it. Indeed, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who appeared as a guest on Anadolu Agency’s Editors’ Desk on August 8, explained the necessity of first establishing a defense alliance in the region by drawing on the experience of the European Union. He stated that European states that had fought one another during World War II (approximately 35 European states participated, and around 45 million Europeans died) came together after the war in an atmosphere provided by the American security umbrella and first established the European Economic Community (EEC), which subsequently evolved and paved the way for major economic and social integration such as the European Union (EU).

According to Fidan, since the greatest problem in the Middle East is mutual wars, insecurity, and conflicts, regional ownership needs to begin with a security architecture, as Europe did.

From an Idea to a Concept, from a Concept to an Agreement

Speaking to Anadolu Agency’s Editors’ Desk, Hakan Fidan emphasized that the Mecca Agreement was not a conjunctural agreement signed in response to current developments, noting that work on the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement had been underway for exactly two years and eight months, and that during this process, the parties had moved from the level of an idea to a concept, and from a concept to an agreement.

The idea and conceptual dimension of the agreement is based on the understanding of “Regional Ownership.” As we have emphasized in our articles since 2024 (See our articles listed under Sources), President of the Republic of Türkiye Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan have for several years stated that the problems of the region should be resolved by institutions established by the countries of the region on the basis of the principle of regional ownership, without the need for hegemonic powers coming from outside.

Approximately 1.5 years before the signing of the Mecca Agreement, on December 16, 2024, in an extensive interview with Saudi Arabia-based Al Hadath television, Hakan Fidan explained the alliance vision with the words: “We are all related to one another, we are all Muslims, we all belong to the same religion. It is possible to come together and, with great maturity and professionalism, define our interests, our desires, and our sensitivities and do with one another what alliances are established to do in Europe, North America, and elsewhere—economic, political, military; all of these are possible in this geography as well.” He had expressed the intellectual foundation of an integration process that would lead to the Mecca Agreement and extend beyond the military dimension with the following statement: “We need to jointly implement a new understanding and a new vision in the region in the new period, especially in very close cooperation with Saudi Arabia and in cooperation with other brotherly countries.”

In his latest interview with AA, Hakan Fidan stated that the countries of the region need to move toward more institutionalized structures in which they themselves guarantee their own security, economic stability, development, and prosperity, emphasizing that this requires a regional defense alliance in which countries are assured of one another’s security. Fidan said that countries cannot build economic structures on top of one another without being assured of each other’s security, and noted that there is a strong will to eliminate, or at least halt, instability in the region and to advance the prosperity of the peoples of the region by achieving greater economic and social integration.

The Core Founders of the Alliance

Hakan Fidan explained that, despite President Erdoğan’s preference for broader participation, a consensus had emerged, largely due to the preferences of the other two partners, for the three countries to constitute the founding core countries; to play an active role in determining the principles, standards, and survival of this structure; and for other countries to join the agreement with the approval of these core countries.

Fidan said that Egypt is a natural partner and that he believes it will also become a partner once the technical problems are resolved at the next stage, adding that they currently treat one another as if they were already alliance members. He emphasized that the regional quartet continues to retain its importance.

In an interview broadcast on Qatar’s Al Jazeera channel on January 29, 2026, months before the Mecca Agreement, Hakan Fidan expressed Türkiye’s perspective on the idea and scope of the Alliance with the following words: “We want to establish a regional solidarity platform. We do not want to be divisive or create a new front. It may start with 2-3 countries, but ideally, if over time it turns into an all-encompassing structure covering most of the countries in the region, this would serve the ultimate objective.”

One of the main parameters of Turkish foreign policy is “Regional Inclusiveness.” This refers to leaving no actor outside in order to ensure regional stability and institutionalizing relations with neighbors on the basis of common interests. Following the Agreement, President Erdoğan stated in his post that it “is open to the participation of all brotherly countries that seek the peace, prosperity, and stability of our region.”

Against Whom Is the Alliance?

Minister Fidan stated that the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement is technically identical to Article 5 of the NATO Treaty concerning collective defense, explaining that member countries join the alliance in order to benefit from each other’s protective support. Fidan explained the purpose of the military alliance with the following words: “You are increasing your deterrence capability. Secondly, the way to enter into such alliances is not primarily to send a message to the outside, but to demonstrate and commit that the countries signing this alliance will not pose a threat to each other’s security; on the contrary, they will guarantee each other’s security. That is the starting point. When you enter into a security alliance, it is not about being against an external actor; internally, it is about saying, ‘from now on, we are in solidarity with one another, and no harm will come from one to the other.’”

Hakan Fidan stated that the allied states had not identified a common written threat, emphasizing that Iran was not the target of this agreement and that countries that did not attack member states were “not the target.” He stressed that the negotiations and discussions that culminated in the Mecca Agreement had begun “before the current war environment,” and that there was no Iran-US/Israel war at that time, emphasizing that the Agreement was independent of the current conjuncture.

The Institutional Structure of the Alliance

Within the framework of the Mecca Agreement, a strategic, political, and military committee will be established to convene during certain periods of the year and to take strategic decisions at the political and military levels within the alliance, in line with the vision of the leaders, with the participation of the foreign ministers, ministers of national defense, and chiefs of general staff.

A secretariat headquartered in Saudi Arabia will be established to closely monitor matters related to the defense alliance among the three countries and to ensure the implementation of decisions taken. Sub-units will be established over time.

The most important issue within the new alliance is establishing interoperability in military matters among countries with different military structures. Therefore, the ability of the armed forces to operate and work together, mutual training and support, logistics, threat analyses, intelligence sharing, and cooperation in the defense industry will be among the most important issues on the agenda. Hakan Fidan emphasized that interoperability would be achieved through exercises and training, stating that this would be a serious institutional undertaking requiring continuity, that common standards needed to be developed, and that this would eventually become an automatic, institutionalized process in its own right.

Conclusion

The Zionist support and Anti-Islam stance the United States and the Western world in general, which disregarded international law during Israel’s genocide in Palestine, together with the US/Israeli attack on Iran and Iran’s destructive retaliation, which resulted in Egypt, Jordan, and Syria being attacked in addition to the Gulf countries, has brought an end to Gulf security based on US protection. This situation accelerated the transformation into reality of Türkiye’s long-standing calls for the Islamic world to stop outsourcing the resolution of its own problems to hegemonic powers, provide for its own security, and establish a NATO-like institutional alliance.

With the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement signed on August 7, Türkiye, with its NATO-standard military, advanced indigenous defense industry, and geopolitical position as a bridge between Europe, the Middle East, and the Caucasus; Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s largest energy producers, with its enormous financial capacity and geopolitical position over the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea; and Pakistan, with its large army, nuclear deterrent capability, and position providing access to the Indian Ocean, have set out to establish a joint defense alliance with immense complementary global power potential. Indonesia, Malaysia, Egypt, Qatar, Kuwait, and Azerbaijan are expected to rapidly join the Mecca Alliance, while the UAE, Bahrain, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Sudan, Libya, Somalia, and Algeria are expected to be included at a later stage. Considering the geopolitical area covered by such an alliance (Anatolia, the Caucasus, Turkestan, Mesopotamia, the Gulf, the Red Sea, the Mediterranean, the Black Sea-Caspian region, the Indian Ocean, South Asia, and Africa), its resources, and its young and dynamic population, and assuming that all of this geography is governed through decisions taken from a single center, it is clear that it would possess an extraordinary global impact.

The alliance has emerged in an area rich in oil and natural gas reserves, establishing connectivity between Asia, Africa, and Europe through trade routes, energy corridors, minerals, infrastructure, and digital networks. In the New World Order, where the criteria and balances of power are rapidly changing, global power will belong to those who possess energy resources and rare earth elements and control supply lines. The Mecca Defense Alliance, together with new members, will provide the Islamic World with this power and pave the way for the establishment of stronger forms of institutional integration.

The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, established with the participation of countries from the region but also open to participation from beyond the region, will enable the participating regional countries to protect their resources themselves without the need for another protector, while providing protection against external threats beyond their national capacities. The sense of mutual confidence will also make it unnecessary for countries to engage in initiatives aimed at undermining each other’s internal stability. This shared sense of security will increase the flow of capital and labor among the countries, encourage investment in one another, and accelerate regional integration.

The greatest threats to regional security are Israeli expansionism, racism, and sectarianism (the Sunni-Shia division). The process of rapidly eliminating terrorist groups and armed militias in the region, encouraged by racism and sectarianism, has begun. Through Türkiye’s “Terror-Free Türkiye” project, the PKK/KCK is being successfully disarmed and dismantled in the region. The results of this can be seen in Türkiye, Syria and Iraq. Disarming the Shia militias operating in the region under the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, ensuring that only the official armies of the respective countries possess weapons, will enable Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, and consequently the countries of the region to achieve stability.

The first positive result of regional ownership has been seen with regard to Israel. Saudi Arabia’s participation in the Mecca Defense Agreement and its hosting of the Alliance has destroyed the US-Israeli dream of establishing a regional order under Israeli control by having Saudi Arabia join the Abraham Accords. Israel’s economic future has darkened as its project to establish dominance over supply and energy routes has come to an end, following Saudi Arabia’s withdrawal from the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), which is vitally important to Israel, and its preference for the Syria-Türkiye route. Türkiye is narrowing Israel’s room for maneuver at sea by controlling the Eastern Mediterranean, while Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are doing so by controlling the Red Sea. As the US strategy of withdrawing from the Middle East and focusing on the Asia-Pacific increases Israel’s isolation, the countries of the region are developing their own solutions.

Of course, the “Mecca Joint Defence Agreement” did not emerge suddenly. On December 15, 2015, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced the establishment of the “Islamic Alliance Army” (Islamic Alliance Against Terrorism) with the approval of 34 Islamic countries. In February-March 2016, this army conducted a massive exercise involving 200,000 troops, known as Ra’du’sh Shimal (Thunder of the North). Later, including the countries that subsequently joined, 41 of the 57 Islamic countries became part of this Islamic Alliance Against Terrorism. This high level of participation demonstrated the mutual need felt among the countries of the Islamic World and the necessity of a military alliance, laying the groundwork for the Mecca Alliance that we are discussing today.

In conclusion, although the “Mecca Joint Defence Agreement,” signed as a military pact, may technically be called an “Islamic NATO” or the “Islamic Alliance Army,” in terms of its scope and objective, it goes beyond these definitions and is regarded as the precursor to an institutional integration similar to the European Union to be established in the Islamic World.