Turkey says Egypt could join emerging Mideast defense alliance

The Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan signaled on Saturday that Egypt could potentially join the new Middle Eastern defense alliance signed on Friday in Mecca between Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

Turkey’s top diplomat assessed that Egypt could join the alliance “after certain technical issues are resolved” without elaborating. While the details of the trilateral defense pact have not been unveiled to the public, Fidan signaled that it is identical to NATO’s Article 5, meaning that an attack on one member state is considered an attack on all allied states.

Known as the “Mecca Joint Defense Agreement,” the defense agreement was signed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Speaking to the state-controlled Turkish news agency Anadolu, Fidan stressed that the alliance is not directed against the Islamic Republic of Iran. 

“Iran is not the target of the defense alliance. No one is a target as long as they do not attack member states of the alliance,” the Turkish foreign minister said, adding that “the safety of navigation in the Red Sea concerns our interests, and therefore Turkey must be involved in Saudi Arabia’s international coalition.”

During the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran during Operation Epic Fury, the Iranian regime launched unprovoked missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia and multiple other Arab states. Saudi officials warned at the time that they would respond if Tehran’s attacks continued and if they hit critical Saudi infrastructure. 

The Turkish foreign minister claimed that the member states of the new security alliance have peaceful intentions. 

“Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey are not countries with expansionist ambitions. Our president’s vision is not to limit the agreement to these three countries alone, but to expand it and, if necessary, bring all nations under its umbrella.” 

Turkey and Israel used to have close security relations. However, Turkey under Erdogan has embraced hostile policies against the Jewish state.

In June, Turkish Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi threatened that Jerusalem “will be ours again,” likely referring to when Jerusalem was controlled by the Ottoman Empire. 

The Turkish foreign minister argued that “cooperation in the defense industry and defense technology is the most important clause in the defense agreement. Talks on the defense agreement in Mecca have been underway for two years and eight months with our partners and with the regional countries with which we signed agreements.”

Turkey, which is a NATO-member state, has an advanced defense industry and has one of the most modern militaries in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia has vast financial resources and Pakistan possesses nuclear weapons. 

The trilateral Mecca agreement was preceded by a September 2025 bilateral defense pact between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. While avoiding publicly criticizing Tehran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are reportedly concerned about the Iranian regime’s expansionist policies and Iranian-backed regional proxies such as Hezbollah and the Houthis.

The Iranian-backed Houthis have been attacking Saudi Arabia in recent days. Furthermore, the three Muslim-majority countries are reportedly also concerned about Israel’s military operations against the Iranian-led axis.

In addition, there are also growing doubts about whether the United States is still willing and capable of containing military escalation in the Middle East. 

Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif urged the Muslim world on Saturday to unite against Israel, which he termed a “common threat.” 

"The Islamic world must unite to confront the common threat posed by Israel," Asif stated. 

“Israel poses a threat to all of us. Islamic countries must adopt a coordinated approach to confront this threat,” he added without elaborating. 

During the Iran war, Tehran attacked multiple Muslim countries. In contrast, Israel provided aerial defense assistance to the UAE against Iranian missiles and drones. 

The Iranian lawmaker Ebrahim Rezaei, who is a member of the country’s National Security Commission, criticized Saudi Arabia for signing the defense agreement with Turkey and Pakistan. 

"The Saudis should know that a paper agreement with Turkey and Pakistan does not bring them security, just as years of unilateral milking of the Americans did not bring them security," Rezaei wrote in a post on 𝕏.