Turkiye is working out how it can help Saudi Arabia counter attacks by Yemen’s Houthis under the Makkah defence pact it signed with Pakistan and the kingdom, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday.
“The technical evaluations are [being] carried out, and these continue among our military officials,” Fidan told a joint press conference in Ankara with his Hungarian counterpart. He said officials were assessing what contributions could be made, particularly on air defence.
‘Not an attack agreement’
Fidan stressed that the pact was defensive, not offensive.
“When a country of this agreement is attacked, you have to side with them,” he said. “This is not an attack agreement. Turkiye is not carrying out an attack by sending troops to another country’s land.”
Two officials said on Wednesday that Turkiye was sending mainly defensive and technical support, Geo News reported. Fidan added that the process of sending the agreement’s text to the Turkish parliament for ratification had been completed.
Riyadh meeting set the course
Fidan’s remarks follow an emergency meeting of the pact’s Strategic Political and Defence Committee in Riyadh on Monday, where Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye agreed to deploy military forces and capabilities rapidly in the kingdom.
According to a Foreign Office statement after the meeting, the committee decided “to move immediately to the practical implementation of the collective defence commitments” and to provide the agreed forces and ensure their rapid deployment, “in accordance with the approved arrangements and the national legislation of the parties”.
The statement did not name any threat, but the meeting took place against the backdrop of Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia. The pact, signed on August 7, commits its members to treat an attack on one as an attack on all.
Pakistan’s position
Pakistani leaders have also described the alliance as defensive:
- Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has said the agreement is defensive, with no offensive agenda.
- Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said Pakistani and Turkish forces would play a supporting role, including reconnaissance, while Saudi forces carry out combat operations.
- ISPR Director General Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry told CNN that Pakistani troops were already in Saudi Arabia and had been there “for decades” across multiple domains.
On Thursday, Pakistan’s information ministry also rejected as “fake and fabricated” a New York Times report that Pakistan Air Force jets were being used against the Houthis, and said any deployment details would be given by the authorities.
Escalating attacks on the kingdom
Saudi authorities said on Wednesday that three people were killed and 36 injured in attacks on two of the kingdom’s international airports, including King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh. On Thursday the Houthis claimed another ballistic missile strike on the Riyadh airport.
Why it matters
Turkiye’s focus on air defence points to the kind of support the alliance is weighing as the Houthis target Saudi airports and infrastructure. With Pakistan and Turkiye both stressing the pact’s defensive character, the coming technical decisions in Ankara will show how far each member’s role extends beyond its current presence.
This article draws on reporting by Dawn and Geo News.
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