Turkey’s parliament received a proposal seeking approval of the Saudi-Pakistan-Türkiye defense agreement on Oct. 21, placing the mutual-defense pact under committee review while leaving the timing of a vote open.
The parliamentary record for the proposal lists Oct. 21 as its receipt date and says it is under committee review. The filing includes the agreement’s full English text.
Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye signed the Makkah Agreement for Joint Defence in Makkah on Aug. 7. The three governments said it was intended to strengthen collective deterrence and expand defense cooperation.
Article 2 says an external armed attack on one signatory would count as “an attack against all the Parties.” The agreement calls for immediate assistance, with the parties to decide its nature and extent after objectively assessing what is needed. They are to act within their available means, including military capabilities. The text also refers to Article 51 of the U.N. Charter, which addresses self-defense, and does not set troop numbers or a fixed package of support.
The agreement covers personnel exchanges, joint training, exercises and deployments, defense co-production and research, secure intelligence sharing, and logistical support such as arms, ammunition, fuel and spare parts. Logistics support depends on availability and compatibility. The agreement describes collective security and defense-industry cooperation as shared aims but provides no financial figures or cost-sharing terms.
The Strategic Political and Defence Committee, made up of the parties’ foreign ministers, defense ministers and chiefs of defence or chiefs of general staff, is to meet twice a year. Its secretariat is to be based in Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan is to appoint the first secretary-general for a three-year term.
At a Riyadh meeting on Oct. 5, the committee selected retired Pakistani Lieutenant General Nauman Mahmood as its first secretary-general. Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said the committee also outlined steps to put its commitments into practice, including preparations for agreed forces and capabilities to move quickly to Saudi Arabia. The statement did not name contributing countries, give force numbers or set a deployment schedule, and did not say a deployment had occurred.
Under Article 16, the agreement takes effect after each country ratifies it under its own procedures and the final instrument is deposited with the committee secretariat. Turkey’s proposal remains under committee review, and the parliamentary record gives no date for a vote.
