Makkah pact ministers meet in Riyadh over Houthi attacks

The top foreign policy and military leaders of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye will meet in Riyadh on Monday under their new Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, with Houthi attacks on the kingdom at the top of the agenda.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will attend the meeting of the alliance’s Strategic Political and Defence Committee, along with Turkiye’s defence minister Yasar Guler and chief of general staff General Selcuk Bayraktaroglu, Turkish Foreign Ministry sources said, The Express Tribune reported, citing Anadolu Agency.

Dar: Houthi attacks in focus

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar announced the meeting on Friday. “The full meeting of the Strategic Political Defence Committee will soon be held in Riyadh, and the current ground realities, particularly the situation in Saudi Arabia, will be examined under the Makkah Accord,” he said.

Dar said Pakistan had condemned the Houthi attack on a power plant in Madina as “not acceptable”. He said he had held detailed talks with Iran about the attacks and reminded Tehran of Pakistan’s obligations under the trilateral agreement. Iran, he said, denied any links “both with the Houthis and the Iraqi militia”.

He also revealed that “at least six countries” have expressed interest in joining the alliance, without naming them.

What Turkiye will say

Fidan is expected to:

• Back Riyadh: reaffirm Turkiye’s strong solidarity with Saudi Arabia, and say attacks on holy sites are unacceptable
• Build the alliance: discuss making the pact a permanent institution, and the steps to come
• Prevent crises: stress that disputes should be settled peacefully and escalation avoided
• Protect shipping: call for freedom and security of navigation on trade routes

How the alliance works

The pact was signed in Makkah on August 7 by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. An attack on one member is treated as an attack on all three.

• The committee: foreign and defence ministers and army chiefs of the three countries
• First meeting: Istanbul, August 31, where it was agreed to set up the alliance’s secretariat in Riyadh
• Secretary-general: retired Pakistani Lieutenant General Nauman Mahmood was nominated as the first secretary-general
• September 24: the three foreign ministers met in New York and condemned attacks on Makkah
• September 25: the three army chiefs met in Riyadh

Dar said the committee would meet again at the end of October or early November.

A war on Saudi Arabia’s doorstep

The meeting comes as fighting in Yemen escalates. On Sunday, Yemen’s Saudi-backed president announced a major offensive to retake Houthi territory, while the Houthis claimed missile and drone strikes on Aramco sites in Riyadh and Khurais. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said last week the alliance was created to “shield” the region from conflict.

Why it matters

The Makkah pact is about to face its first real test. For Pakistan, which has pledged to defend Saudi Arabia in any conflict, Monday’s decisions will shape what that commitment means in practice. Read our reports on Yemen’s new offensive and on Khawaja Asif’s pledge to defend Saudi Arabia.

This article draws on reporting by The Express Tribune and Anadolu Agency.