President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has expressed hope that more regional countries will join the defence pact signed by Turkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
The Makkah Joint Defence Agreement was signed on Friday amid the US-Iran conflict, which has affected regional security and disrupted maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea.
According to media reports, Erdogan said the agreement was designed with a broader regional vision in mind. He indicated that the three signatories wanted the framework to expand and eventually provide a platform for wider regional cooperation.
Earlier, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan that Egypt could become part of the agreement at a later stage. He stated that only a small number of technical matters needed to be resolved. Fidan is scheduled to travel to Cairo on Thursday and Friday.
Although Egypt and Turkiye maintain extensive military cooperation, Cairo has not signalled that it plans to join the new security arrangement. The pact includes a collective-defence provision similar to NATO, under which an attack against one member would be treated as an attack against all.
