News Centre The first meeting of the Strategic Political and Defence Committee, established under the Mecca Mutual Defence Agreement, took place in Istanbul. Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan and Minister of Defence Yaşar Güler attended the meeting. At the meeting, the topics of "defence cooperation, joint production, counter-terrorism, and international security" were discussed.
The first meeting of the Strategic Political and Defence Committee, established under the agreement, took place following a family photograph. The meeting was attended by Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan, Minister of National Defence Yaşar Güler, Chief of the General Staff General Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu, Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ishaq Dar, Federal Minister for Defence Khawaja Muhammad Asif, and Commander of the Armed Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, Saudi Arabia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Minister of Defence Prince Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and Chief of the General Staff General Fayyadh bin Hamed Al-Ruwaili. MEETINGS TO BE HELD WITH OTHER COUNTRIES Making statements following the meeting, Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan argued that it has become an urgent necessity for regional countries to act jointly for security, stability, prosperity, and lasting peace, and to institutionalise the steps they take in this direction, stating, "With the agreement, the process of testing a new security and cooperation architecture in our region has begun." Pointing out that the participation of other countries in the alliance is possible per the agreement, Fidan made the assessment, "Discussions need to be held regarding its conditions, processes, and standards, both with the countries wishing to join the alliance and with the other countries in the alliance." On the other hand, Erdoğan had stated that the idea of the Mecca Agreement was a consequence of the new conditions that emerged in the face of developments in the region.
With this agreement, a significant threshold will have been crossed in the plan to position Turkey in the Middle East within the framework of the orientations of American imperialism. The agreement also stands as a part of the move to contain Iran in line with a US-Israeli-centric plan. The agreement was implemented at a time when Iranian retaliations extended to the Gulf states and the energy infrastructure in the region.
The fact that Pakistan, one of the parties to the alliance, possesses nuclear weapons, and that Turkey is the member of NATO with the largest army after the US, increases the military weight of the agreement. Saudi Arabia is also among the world's largest oil exporters. The agreement also attracts attention due to the fact that NATO member Turkey is simultaneously included in a separate military alliance that involves mutual defence obligations outside of NATO.
Note: This article is translated from the original article titled İlk toplantıda genişleme mesajı, published in BirGün newspaper on September 1, 2026.
