Turkey is working on a roadmap for other countries to join a joint defence pact established earlier this month with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Monday.
Fidan was speaking at a press conference after the first meeting of a key committee established under what has been described as the “Mecca Defence Alliance”.
The alliance brings together Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, three predominantly Sunni Muslim countries that are also US partners, amid growing regional security concerns.
The three countries signed the defence agreement on 7 August in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Fidan said work was now under way on a mechanism to allow other countries to join the pact.
The announcement comes as regional states reassess their security arrangements amid escalating tensions and conflicts across the Middle East.
