Turkey's parliament prepared to ratify a defence pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan
Turkey’s parliament was set on Wednesday to ratify the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, which includes a collective-defence clause committing Ankara to a formal mutual defence obligation toward Riyadh. Ratification would not itself send Turkish forces to Saudi Arabia; deploying personnel would require a separate parliamentary mandate.
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Turkey’s parliament was set on Wednesday to ratify a defence pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan that includes a collective-defence clause, committing the country to Riyadh’s defence as it faces attacks by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis.
The three countries signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement in August, before the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia began. Turkey submitted it to parliament for ratification last month.
Ratification would give Ankara a formal mutual-defence obligation toward Saudi Arabia, but would not by itself send Turkish forces there. A separate parliamentary mandate would be required to deploy personnel. Officials said the scope of support would be determined through consultations and in line with Riyadh’s requests. Officials told Reuters last month Turkey’s contribution was expected to be limited to military equipment, intelligence sharing and weapons systems.
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Reporting
- Reuters — Turkey's parliament set to ratify defence pact with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan as Houthi attacks mount
- Internazionale (with Reuters) — Turkey’s parliament set to ratify defence pact with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan as Houthi attacks mount - Internazionale
- AOL (with Reuters) — Turkey's parliament set to ratify defence pact with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan as Houthi attacks mount - AOL
- The Times of Israel — Turkey’s parliament set to ratify defense pact with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan
- News.Az — Türkiye to ratify defence pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan
Verifier’s note
Reuters reports that Turkey’s parliament was set to ratify the pact on November 4 amid Houthi attacks. Internazionale, AOL, The Times of Israel, and News.az carry the same central report; the other results do not directly report this parliamentary ratification event.