Turkey and Qatar sign defense agreement as Erdogan, Al Thani discuss Iran and Gaza

ISTANBUL — Turkey and Qatar signed a defense agreement on Friday that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said would further strengthen ties between the regional allies, his office said.

The announcement came after Erdogan met Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Istanbul.

Qatar’s ruler traveled to Istanbul after attending the United Nations COP31 climate summit in southern Turkey.

“A mutual defense agreement signed by Turkey and Qatar today will add a new dimension to the brotherly ties between the two countries,” Erdogan said during the meeting, according to a statement from his office.

The statement gave no further details about the contents of the agreement.

Erdogan also said Turkey and Qatar would expand cooperation in the defense industry.

In August, Turkey, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a regional defense pact under which the three countries would come to each other’s aid if one of them came under attack.

Ratified by the Turkish parliament last week, the pact links NATO member Turkey, which has the alliance’s second-largest military, with Pakistan, the Muslim world’s only nuclear-armed state, and Saudi Arabia, the Gulf’s leading power.

Turkey has said the agreement is not aimed at any other country and remains open to other states, including Egypt.

In October, Qatar, Indonesia, Pakistan and Turkey signed a multilateral memorandum of understanding on defense cooperation in Doha.

The agreement, known as “Badr,” aims to bolster cooperation between the participating countries.

Erdogan and the Qatari emir also discussed the Iran war.

Turkey and Qatar would continue working together “to prevent a renewed outbreak of war in the Gulf region and to promote dialogue and peace,” Erdogan said.

The leaders discussed Israel’s strikes on Gaza and the humanitarian situation in the Strip, efforts toward normalization in Syria and the latest developments in Libya, the statement added.