A high-level Pakistani delegation arrived in Riyadh on Monday to participate in a meeting of the Political and Strategic Defense Committee established under the Mecca Mutual Defense Pact, with senior officials from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye taking part.
اضافة اعلان
The delegation includes Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, the defense minister and the army chief of staff, according to a statement from Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The meeting will discuss the latest regional developments and review ongoing cooperation among the three countries under the Mecca Mutual Defense Pact.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar said last Friday that the committee would hold an emergency meeting in Riyadh to discuss the Houthi attacks on Saudi territory and ways to address them, as well as review the existing cooperation among the three countries.
Proposal for Political Engagement with Houthis
Dar said the talks would also address a proposal for political engagement with the Houthis rather than pursuing a military option, following a proposal put forward by Iran to address the crisis.
He noted that the idea remains at the stage of initial consultations and has not yet developed into a formal written proposal.
More Than Six Countries Interested in Joining
Regarding membership in the pact, Dar revealed that more than six countries have expressed interest in joining. He explained that applications for membership cannot be considered until the pact has been fully activated, a process that could take around a year.
Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye signed the Mecca Mutual Defense Pact on August 7. The agreement stipulates that an attack on any one of the three countries would be considered an attack against all three.
On September 25, the chiefs of staff of the three countries’ armed forces held a meeting in Riyadh, during which they condemned the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia.
