Ankara lawmakers back 'attack on one is attack on all' pact with Riyadh and Islamabad

Türkiye's parliament approved a bill on ratifying the Mecca joint defense agreement with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan by 279 votes to 119, completing its vote on a pact that treats an outside attack on one member as an attack on all.

Türkiye's Grand National Assembly on Thursday adopted a bill approving the ratification of the Mecca Agreement on Joint Defense with Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. Of the 398 lawmakers who voted, 279 voted in favor and 119 against, with no abstentions.

The first of the bill's three articles, which approves the ratification, was adopted in an earlier session. The remaining two articles, covering the law's entry into force and its implementation by the president, were voted on Thursday before the bill as a whole went to an electronic vote.

President Erdoğan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif after signing the Mecca agreement on Aug. 7

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed the 16-article agreement in Mecca on Aug. 7. Under its second article, an external armed attack on any party is considered an attack on all. Assistance, including military capabilities, would be provided under the right of self-defense in Article 51 of the U.N. Charter, with the parties deciding its nature and scope by consensus.

The agreement also covers counterterrorism, intelligence sharing, joint exercises and defense-industry cooperation. It remains in force indefinitely, but no party may withdraw during its first 10 years; after that, a member must give at least three months' written notice.

During the debate, Hulusi Akar, the former defense minister who chairs parliament's National Defense Committee, said the pact complements NATO and is not directed at any country. Supporters also noted that any deployment of Turkish troops abroad would still require separate parliamentary authorization.

The bill was sent to parliament on Oct. 20 and cleared the Foreign Affairs Committee on Oct. 27. Pakistan had already approved the agreement. In Türkiye, ratification by the president and publication of the law in the Official Gazette are the next steps.

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