Saudi Crown Prince, Greek PM Discuss Bilateral Ties

Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan have agreed to create a permanent secretariat for their Makkah Joint Defense Agreement, giving the three-country security arrangement an institutional base in Saudi Arabia.

The decision followed the first meeting of the agreement’s Strategic Political and Defense Committee in Istanbul. The gathering brought together the foreign and defense ministers, defense commanders and chiefs of the general staffs from all three countries.

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In keeping with their commitment to fulfilling their regional responsibilities, the three states reaffirm their determination to work together within the framework of the Makkah Joint Defense Agreement to achieve lasting peace and stability in the region.

A joint statement said the secretariat would support cooperation under the agreement and would initially be led by a Pakistani secretary-general for three years. The countries said the arrangement would strengthen their solidarity, improve the credibility of collective deterrence and defense, and support cooperative security efforts.

The three governments also pledged to work together on defense industries, joint production and technology development. They said these activities would boost defense capabilities and strengthen cohesion among their armed forces.

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The process of testing a new architecture for security and cooperation in our region has begun with this agreement.

The statement linked the agreement to regional de-escalation and the peaceful resolution of crises. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said the arrangement would promote stability and prosperity while reducing uncertainty. He called it a “historic step” and said the region’s countries needed to work together to establish peace.

Fidan also said the agreement marked the beginning of an effort to test a new regional architecture for security and cooperation. He presented the alliance as a way for countries in the region to address their problems through their own institutions rather than through foreign interventions, which he said had deepened and intensified those problems.

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Historic step