Mecca Defence Pact: Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has pushed back against criticism of the new Mecca Joint Defence Agreement after fresh Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia. He said the pact shouldn’t be judged by a conflict that has already lasted around 10 years.
Fidan made the comments during a Türkiye-US relations panel in New York on September 21. The event was organised by Türkiye’s Communications Directorate. He was asked whether the Houthi attacks had become the first major test for the new defence agreement and whether the alliance had done enough so far.
Fidan then pointed to former US Ambassador to Türkiye James Jeffrey, who was sitting in the audience. He asked Jeffrey when he joined the military. Jeffrey said it was about 50 years ago. Fidan then asked how many times he had seen NATO use its Article 5 collective-defence clause.
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“Only once,” came the response from the audience.
Fidan replied, “That is not fair at all. No one criticises NATO for being a ‘paper tiger’, but when it comes to a newly established defence alliance, they point to a 10-year crisis — the Yemen crisis — and say, ‘Look, it doesn’t work,’”
“We have only just begun,” he added. His response received applause from the audience.
What Is the Mecca Defence Agreement?
The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement was signed by Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in August. The pact is built around collective deterrence and says an armed attack against one member is to be treated as an attack against all three. Türkiye has also described the agreement as supporting Article 51 of the UN Charter, which covers the right of self-defence.
Fidan said Türkiye had been working on the idea for five or six years. The plan took time because Ankara had to bring other countries into the arrangement. He said the main idea is for regional countries to take more responsibility for their own security and protect their sovereignty and territorial integrity.
“The countries of the region have learned the principle that we, as Türkiye, have articulated: ‘There is no domination, no submission; rather, there is cooperation,’” Fidan said.
The three countries have already started building the structure of the pact. A Strategic Political and Defence Committee held its first meeting in Istanbul on August 31 with senior officials from Türkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. Fidan said more countries could also join later.
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“Our idea is that once we institutionalise it, the invitation for other countries to join will remain open,” he said.
Houthi Attacks Put Focus On Pact
The comments came as Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia continue to raise questions about how the new agreement will work in a real crisis. On September 19, Fidan said Türkiye was ready to help Saudi Arabia with some military needs, especially technical support. Reuters also reported that Pakistan had said it would act when the “time comes”.
Fidan also spoke about wider regional problems. He said the Iran war, the Yemen conflict and Israel’s regional actions were linked challenges that were making diplomacy harder.
“These threats reinforce one another and obstruct diplomacy,” he said. He also called for closer regional action along with cooperation with Washington.
“In particular, we expect the US to make greater use of its influence over Israel to bring an end to policies that undermine both regional and global peace and stability,” Fidan said.
He said Gaza remains a major test for regional security and stability. Fidan also said Türkiye supports US President Donald Trump’s efforts to end the Gaza crisis.
