Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan agree to establish secretariat under Mecca pact

Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan have agreed to establish a general secretariat in Saudi Arabia under the Mecca Mutual Defence Agreement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said Monday.

The secretariat will initially be headed by a Pakistani secretary-general for three years.

A joint statement issued by the Political and Strategic Defence Committee of the Mecca Agreement following its first meeting in Istanbul said the three countries would work to "enhance their defence capabilities and the cohesion of their armed forces through strong cooperation in the defence industries sector and the development of joint production and technologies".

According to the statement, the three countries reaffirmed their determination to work together under the Mecca Agreement to achieve sustainable peace and stability in their region by "supporting efforts aimed at de-escalation and restraint in a way that encourages peaceful solutions to crises".

The statement said the three countries had agreed to take further steps "to institutionalise their cooperation under the Mecca Agreement in a manner that strengthens their solidarity, ensures the credibility and effectiveness of collective deterrence and defence, and contributes to regional efforts and cooperative security aimed at achieving a just, comprehensive and lasting peace".

Earlier on Monday, 31 August, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said during a news conference that the Mecca Mutual Defence Agreement would gradually strengthen stability in the region and reduce uncertainty.

"With this agreement, a process of testing a new security and cooperative architecture has begun in our region," he said.

Fidan stressed that joint action by countries in the region for security, stability, prosperity and lasting peace, and institutionalising the steps they take in this direction, "has become an urgent need".

Door open for expansion

The Turkish minister also said the Mecca Mutual Defence Agreement was built based on keeping the door open for expansion.

"Thanks to the Mecca Defence Alliance, we will witness increasing consolidation of stability in the region and a decline in uncertainty," he stressed.

Fidan also said they were working on a roadmap for procedures for joining the alliance.

"The alliance was essentially formed for expansion. But, in the first stage, the foundations must be properly established, and its institutionalisation must also be achieved properly. Both Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are very keen on this, as are we," he remarked.

He noted the three parties agreed, on the one hand, to establish a strong and institutional foundation capable of dealing with problems and bringing stability, peace and prosperity to the region. On the other hand, they agreed to expand the alliance, noting that this would happen in stages.

The Turkish foreign minister stressed that any potential ally joining the alliance should join a structure with good infrastructure that is already established and operating efficiently.

"We are currently trying, together, to complete the establishment phase, which is the most difficult part," he added. "We will see this alliance gradually lead to greater consolidation of stability in the region, and uncertainty will decline. The positions of the parties will become clearer".

He noted that a decline in uncertainty would create an environment of stability in which investment could increase and further development could be achieved.

Netanyahu: 'a common enemy of humanity'

Meanwhile, regarding Israel considering Turkey a "strategic threat", Fidan said, "Since [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu entered the election phase, he, his government and his supporters have increasingly adopted rhetoric targeting Turkey, and positions targeting our president [Recep Tayyip Erdogan] and some of our colleagues have also been issued by [the Israeli government]".

"First, one thing must be emphasised. Netanyahu, who has become a common enemy of humanity, the international community and security, and I stress this, Netanyahu, this criminal, the perpetrator of genocide, is not human in the true sense," he continued. "Netanyahu, his mentality and the group committing genocide and acting alongside him constitute a threat not only to Turkey but also to global security as a whole. It is a major mistake to think of this as a problem concerning Turkey alone".

Fidan further called on the international community to perform the task it has not yet carried out and "stop this criminal, the perpetrator of genocide, and prevent him from continuing to harm the region, Israel, the Jewish people and the entire world".

"This criminal who enjoys shedding the blood of Palestinians and Muslims must be stopped. The continuation of this is also causing serious harm to Israel, to the Palestinians, of course, and to the region," he added.

Fidan said that, in light of Netanyahu's statements, he did not want to establish a Palestinian state or end the occupation continuing in the countries of the region.

"He wants the continuation of the approach based on genocide and occupation and the approach that puts regional security and international security at risk. This is now not only a major threat to us but also to the entire region and the international community. The international system must confront this threat, Netanyahu's threat," the Turkish official remarked.

Earlier on Monday, the first meeting of the Political and Strategic Defence Committee established under the Mecca Mutual Defence Agreement between Turkey, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia began in Istanbul.

Turkey is hosting the first meeting of the committee, which includes the foreign and defence ministers and the chiefs of staff of the three countries, to provide strategic direction for activities to be carried out under the agreement.

The meeting began after participants posed for a group photograph.

The Turkish delegation includes Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Defence Minister Yasar Guler and Chief of General Staff Selcuk Bayraktaroglu.

Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan, Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman and Chief of General Staff Fayyad bin Hamed Al-Ruwaili represent Saudi Arabia.

The Pakistani delegation includes Foreign Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Federal Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir.

The three countries are concerned about the military positions of Israel and Iran as the United States faces challenges in containing regional unrest that has caused a global energy crisis.

Mutual defence 

On 7 August, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed the Mutual Defence Agreement in Mecca.

The agreement came as part of defence cooperation aimed at strengthening commitments to maintaining peace, stability and prosperity at the regional and global levels, based on the principle of burden-sharing and a shared understanding of security.

The agreement aims to strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggression and stipulates that an armed attack against any of the three countries would be considered an attack against all of them.

Article translated from Arabic by Afrah Almatwari. To read the original, click here.