Iran Says Mecca Agreement Not a Threat, Highlights Deep Ties with Pakistan and Türkiye

Iran Says Mecca Agreement Not a Threat, Highlights Deep Ties with Pakistan and Türkiye
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TEHRAN - The Iranian Foreign Ministry has officially responded to the recently signed trilateral defense pact between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Türkiye, stating that Tehran sees "no reason to worry" that the agreement is directed against Iran .

Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei, addressing a press conference in Tehran, emphasized the deep religious, historical, and civilizational ties binding Iran to the three signatory nations .

"There is no reason to worry that this treaty will be against Iran... Türkiye and Pakistan have deep historic ties with Iran." 

A 'Change in Perception' Towards the US

Baghaei characterized the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement as a sign of a fundamental shift in how regional countries approach their security needs . He argued that nations in the region have concluded that security cannot be outsourced, in an apparent reference to the United States .

"The countries of the region have realized that security is not a commodity that can be bought from false security brokers." 

Opportunity for Regional Cooperation

The spokesman left the door open for potential Iranian cooperation with the pact's framework, noting that Tehran has consistently advocated for security mechanisms based on regional cooperation without foreign interference . He added that Iran's past proposals for regional security, including the Hormuz Peace Plan, could be updated in light of current developments .

The response follows earlier signals from Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who called for Muslim nations to rely on their own capabilities in the face of external challenges . Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan also confirmed that the pact is defensive in nature and not directed against Iran . The agreement, signed in Mecca on August 7, includes a collective defense clause stipulating that an attack on one signatory will be treated as an attack on all .

Tom Cooper is a Vienna-based independent military analyst, historian, and author specializing in post-Cold War air warfare, Middle Eastern conflicts, and the armed forces of Central and Eastern Europe. With over 25 years of field research and analysis, he is a frequent contributor to specialized publications like Jane's Intelligence Review, Combat Aircraft Magazine, and the Central European Journal of Strategic Studies. A former Austrian Army reservist (military intelligence), Cooper combines boots-on-the-ground technical intelligence (TECHINT) collection—photographing and analyzing equipment—with open-source intelligence (OSINT) and deep archival research. He is renowned for his meticulous "order of battle" analyses, tracking the deployment and attrition of military units in conflicts from the Balkans to Syria and Ukraine.


Vienna, Austria
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