Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey’s NATO-style defence pact puts $5.5 billion arms deals with two African countries back in spotlight

A new NATO-like defence alliance between Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey has revived attention on Pakistani arms deals worth more than $5 billion with Sudan and Libya, which Saudi Arabia had earlier moved to halt in the wake of the US-Iran war.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement on August 7, declaring that an armed attack against any member would be considered an attack against all three.

The agreement expands an earlier Saudi-Pakistan defence pact and formally brings Turkey, which has one of the region’s largest militaries and a growing defence industry, into the arrangement.

For Africa, the development raises a key question: could closer Saudi, Pakistani and Turkish military cooperation revive or reshape Pakistani defence deals worth more than $5 billion involving Sudan and Libya?

There is no indication that the new agreement has restarted either transaction.