Turkey, Pakistan agree on Saudi Arabia’s military deployment under Mecca deal | News

The Mecca Alliance says it has agreed to trigger collective deterrence measures in response to “heinous attacks” by Yemen’s Houthi group against Saudi Arabia.

In a statement Monday, Pakistan’s foreign ministry said Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey had decided to “provide agreed military forces and capabilities and ensure their rapid deployment” in the kingdom.

Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman said member countries had agreed to trigger the deployment in response “to the attacks and all those responsible for them.”

The announcement comes as the Saudi-backed Yemeni government launched a counter-offensive to push the Iran-aligned Houthis from territory captured last month.

The agreement was reached during an emergency meeting of the Strategic, Political and Defense Committee of the three-country Mecca Alliance in Riyadh.

The mutual defense agreement was signed in August, shortly before the launch of the Houthis’ offensive in Yemen, which included attacks on Saudi targets. The question of whether Islamabad and Ankara would agree to trigger the deal has persisted since.

However, with the intensification of hostilities in Yemen, the committee agreed to “act immediately” to implement the collective defense measures to “ensure their rapid deployment in the Kingdom,” the joint statement said.

The defense engagements will be carried out in accordance with “approved arrangements” and the laws of the three countries, the statement added.

The Mecca Defense Alliance emerged as a response to intensifying regional conflicts, including the US-Israeli war against Iran.

The agreement to form the new alliance was signed by the three countries on August 7. It states that an attack on one of the three states will be treated as an attack on all – reflecting a key NATO stipulation.

Although steps were taken to institutionalize the Mecca Alliance, the agreement did not initially provide details on each country’s military or defense obligations.

Following a barrage of missiles launched by the Houthis towards Saudi Arabia in early September, Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said any attack on the kingdom could trigger the deal.

“If there is an unprovoked aggression, or if what is happening in Yemen spreads to Saudi Arabia, the Mecca agreement will definitely become operational,” he told Pakistani media outlet Geo News.

However, no action has been taken so far, with analysts noting that Pakistan and Turkey remain keen to continue playing their roles as mediators in the US-Iran conflict.

The three alliance members combined have nearly 1.4 million active troops, approximately 3,400 military aircraft, 6,000 tanks and more than 340 naval assets, according to the 2026 Global Firepower Index.