Makkah Defence Alliance moving rapidly from principles to implementation: Masood Khan
Islamabad: Former Pakistani Ambassador to the US, China and the UN, Sardar Masood Khan, has said the swift follow-up meeting of Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan shows that the Makkah Pact, renamed as Makkah Defence Alliance, is moving rapidly from broad principles to concrete institutional and defence cooperation.
According to Kashmir Media Service, speaking in a television interview, he said the meeting in Istanbul held within the same month of the agreement’s signing on August 07 reflected the three countries’ determination to translate the understanding into an effective mechanism for political, strategic and defence coordination. He said the proposed Political-Defence Committee would provide an institutional framework to guide and implement the agenda of the agreement.
“The normative principles of collective deterrence and strategic synergy are now being translated into practical measures,” he observed. Sardar Masood Khan said the three countries were expected to focus on joint military training, enhanced interoperability, defence procurement and production, intelligence sharing, cyber security and coordination against emerging threats. Missile defence and maritime security, particularly in the Red Sea region, would also require close consultation. He added that Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye already had longstanding political and defence linkages and the Makkah Pact would take these to a higher and more structured level.
He said the arrangement was not a sectarian or offensive alliance, but a defensive one aimed at deterring aggression.
On possible expansion, he said the doors should remain open to other Islamic countries, naming Egypt, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Indonesia as potential future participants.
