Pakistan and Türkiye to Send Forces to Saudi Arabia as the Three Countries Activate Their Makkah Defence Pact

October 6: Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye (Turkey) agreed in Riyadh on Monday to put the collective defence commitments of their Makkah Alliance for Defence into immediate effect, which means Pakistani and Turkish military forces are to be made available for rapid deployment inside Saudi Arabia. The decision came at an emergency meeting of the alliance’s Strategic Political and Defence Committee, as Saudi Arabia backs an offensive against the Houthis in Yemen and faces missile and drone attacks on its own territory.

Key highlights

• The decision: The three countries will “move immediately to the practical implementation of the collective defence commitments”, the joint statement said.
• Deployment: “Agreed military forces and capabilities” are to be ready for rapid deployment in the kingdom. No numbers or dates were given.
• New post: Pakistan’s Lieutenant General (retired) Nauman Mahmood becomes the alliance’s first secretary-general, for three years.
• Condemnation: The statement condemned attempts to target Makkah and Madinah and attacks on Saudi cities and economic sites. It did not name who carried them out.
• The pact: Signed on 7 August 2026, it treats an attack on one member as an attack on all three.

What the three countries agreed

The joint statement, as carried by Pakistani newspapers, says the forces will deploy “in accordance with approved arrangements and the national legislation of the three participating countries”. It gives priority to military integration, coordinated preparedness and joint readiness.

The committee “condemned in the strongest terms the attempted targeting of Makkah and Madinah, as well as continuing attacks targeting cities and civilian and economic facilities in Saudi Arabia”. Pakistan and Türkiye praised “the vigilance and preparedness of the Saudi Armed Forces”.

Pakistan sent its most senior team: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Field Marshal Asim Munir, who is chief of defence forces and army chief, and Defence Minister Khawaja Asif. The foreign ministers, defence ministers and chiefs of general staff of Saudi Arabia and Türkiye also took part, Dawn reported.

Who is doing the fighting

Saudi forces are carrying out the combat operations against the Houthis, while Pakistani and Turkish forces have a “supportive role”, with Pakistan involved in reconnaissance, according to Dawn. That is the only description of the division of roles in the reports we reviewed.

The meeting followed a weekend in which the Houthis claimed a missile and drone strike on a Saudi Aramco site near Riyadh, a claim the Saudi-led coalition called misleading, and in which Yemen’s government launched an offensive it calls Operation Yemen Dawn. Our report on that offensive is here: Yemen’s government claims Dhubab and positions near Bab al-Mandeb.

What is not known

• How many Pakistani and Turkish troops, aircraft or ships are involved.
• When they will arrive and where they will be based.
• Whether they will take part in combat or stay in a support role.
• What approvals each country still needs under its own law, which the statement refers to.

Before the meeting, Dar had said the talks would also look at “political engagement with the Iran-aligned Houthis as an alternative to the military option”, Al Jazeera reported. The reports of the joint statement do not mention that option.

What the Makkah alliance is

The alliance was signed on 7 August 2026. It builds on the Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement that Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed on 17 September 2025, and it works in a similar way to Article 5 of the NATO treaty, The Express Tribune noted: an attack on one member is treated as an attack on all. Al Jazeera refers to the treaty as the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement.

Timeline

• 17 September 2025: Pakistan and Saudi Arabia sign a mutual defence agreement.
• 7 August 2026: Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye sign the Makkah alliance treaty.
• Mid-September 2026: The Houthis take Yemen’s Red Sea coast near the Bab al-Mandeb strait.
• 3 to 4 October: The Houthis claim a strike near Riyadh. Yemen’s government orders an offensive.
• 5 October: The alliance’s committee meets in Riyadh and activates its defence commitments.

Analysis: what it means for South Asia

Analysis by the International Desk. For Pakistan this turns a treaty promise into a live commitment in a war zone, at a moment when its government is also dealing with an opposition march heading for Islamabad. The appointment of a Pakistani general as secretary-general gives Islamabad the alliance’s top administrative post. What the statement leaves open is the scale of the deployment and whether the political track Dar spoke of is still alive. Those two answers will show whether this is a show of unity or the start of a wider war effort.

Written by

International Desk

The International Desk covers world and Asian affairs, diplomacy and conflict, with a focus on what they mean for India. Stories are checked against at least two credible sources before publication.

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