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Friday, September 25, 2026
Turkish parliament will take up Pakistan, Saudi Arabia defense pact next month, speaker says
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A joint defense pact between Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan has not yet been submitted to Turkey’s parliament for approval, Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmus says, adding he expected the agreement to be formally submitted when parliament returns from recess next month.
The regional powers signed the “Mecca Joint Defence Agreement” in August, weeks before Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis launched attacks against Saudi Arabia amid the war in Iran. Similar to NATO’s Article 5, the pact stipulates that an attack on one ally constitutes an attack on all.
“For international agreements to come into effect, parliamentary approval is needed. The meetings held as part of the agreement at the moment are preparatory meetings,” Kurtulmus tells reporters in Ankara.
The Times of Israel Community.