BEHIND THE LINES: Anti-Israel statements of the emergent alliance between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan are not just rhetoric. Rather, they form an integral element in its strategy.

Riyadh faces a dilemma: how to deter attacks and protect the ambitious economic vision it is pursuing without becoming entangled in a broader conflict in the region.

The three countries signed the "Mecca Joint Defense Agreement" on August 7, uniting Sunni-Muslim US allies concerned about a regional conflagration that has brought Iranian…