Syria weighing whether to join Makkah pact: foreign minister
Syria’s top diplomat on Saturday said Damascus was considering whether to join the Makkah defence alliance that binds Turkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
The Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, signed on August 7, 2026, by Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Turkey, establishes a collective defence framework where an armed attack against any single member is treated as an attack against all three.
“Discussions are currently underway to evaluate Syria’s entry into the Makkah alliance,” Al Shaibani said at the Manama Dialogue conference in Bahrain.
Saudi Arabia, under heavy fire from Yemen’s Houthis, is a key backer of Syria’s government that came to power after the fall of former strongman Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.
Pakistan has two defence agreements with Saudi Arabia aimed at collective deterrence: the Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement between the two countries, and the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, which also includes Turkiye.
Pakistan is providing “whatever support is needed” to defend Saudi Arabia amid the Houthi attacks, military spokesperson Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said earlier this month.
However, the Inter-Services Public Relations director general also clarified that all members of the Makkah Defence Alliance were “absolutely clear… that this alliance has no offensive intent; it is purely defensive”.
On Friday, Lt-Gen Chaudhry said the wording of the pact did not bar new members, when asked whether Iran could join the agreement.
“Anyone who has a shared vision of collective deterrence and regional peace, why not? Everyone is most welcome,” he said, adding that it was for the political leadership of the three principal parties to decide.
Earlier this month, French President Emmanuel Macron made a surprise visit to Riyadh and said France had sent troops to help shield a key Saudi oil terminal from Houthi attacks.
Also in October, the UK government announced it would deploy British fighter planes to help Saudi Arabia against the attacks.