(May 13): Pakistan has indicated that Türkiye and Qatar may join the nuclear-armed nation’s mutual defence cooperation pact with Saudi Arabia as the US-Iran war reshapes security alignment in the Middle East and South Asia.
The arrangement is currently in the process of being finalised, said Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on a local television show on Monday night. “If Qatar and Türkiye also join this existing agreement, it will be a welcome development.”
The initiative aims to build a broader platform of cooperation among “like-minded” states to strengthen regional stability and collective security, the minister said.
An expanded alliance would bring together erstwhile rivals Saudi Arabia and Türkiye when the US-Iran war has pulled the wider Middle East into the conflict. Pakistan is also the key mediator for talks between the US and Iran.
Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed the defence pact in September, stating that “any aggression against either country shall be considered an aggression against both.” The two countries have had several meetings since Iran began retaliatory attacks against its neighbours, including Saudi Arabia.
Last month, a Pakistani military force arrived at King Abdulaziz Air Base in Saudi Arabia to enhance joint military cooperation, supporting security and stability in the region.
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