From Makkah to Istanbul: Turning a Defense Pact into a Strategic Alliance

This analysis by Tughral Yamin, Senior IPS Associate, examines the Istanbul meeting of Pakistan, Türkiye, and Saudi Arabia and its significance for transforming the Makkah Joint Defense Agreement into a functioning collective security mechanism. The policy insight explores the institutional, military, financial, and diplomatic arrangements needed to make the agreement credible, including command structures, intelligence sharing, joint exercises, and defense-industrial cooperation. It also assesses the Iran-US conflict, the India factor, and the need to preserve the alliance’s defensive and non-sectarian character. Importantly, the commentary argues that the Makkah Agreement should serve as a “shield, not a sword,” combining credible deterrence with diplomacy and a joint regional peace initiative.