THE leadership of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye seems determined to operationalize the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement (MJDA). They have taken a few practical steps to formulate a structure and institutionalize the Alliance’s functioning. However, its operational status remains unclear, with details on how they will operationalize it still classified or not yet formalized.
The escalation in conflict between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthis has necessitated that the members of the MJDA fast-track efforts to constitute its posture and operationalize it. Currently, the Houthis have declared a maritime blockade targeting Saudi Arabia, attacked ships in the Red Sea and also carried out attacks in Saudi Arabia.
The Trump administration has refused to assist Riyadh and Iranian leadership has expressed an inability to control the Houthis, known as Iran’s proxy in the region. As a result, the operational status will determine MJDA’s role in the Middle East’s evolving security architecture. Therefore, the Alliance’s fate hinges on the decisions it makes against the Houthis to defend Saudi Arabia.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman and Turkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan signed the MJDA, a trilateral security Framework, at the Makkah Al-Mukarramah Summit on August 7, 2026. It laid the foundation for a first Pan-Islamic military institutional initiative among three key Muslim States, independent of the West, stretching from South Asia through the Gulf to the Eastern Mediterranean.
Notably, the creators of the MJDA have opined that it is not a military bloc, nor is it aimed at any specific country. The critical question is: if the MJDA is neither a military bloc nor aimed at any specific country, how does it enhance its members’ collective deterrence and defence capabilities against aggression?
The primary objective of the MJDA is to strengthen “collective deterrence against any act of aggression.” It means that an armed attack against one member will be regarded as an attack against all three. The MJDA facilitates the expansion of military cooperation among the three States “to further strengthen their collective security and to promote peace, security and stability in the region and beyond, in pursuit of a secure and prosperous future.”
MJDA members have taken practical steps to strengthen the alliance since its formation. These steps included creating and holding the first meeting of the MJDA Strategic Political and Defense Committee, which convened in Istanbul, Turkiye, on August 31, 2026. Second, at its first meeting, the Committee announced the establishment of the Alliance secretariat in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Third, the Committee appointed retired Pakistani Lieutenant General Nauman Mahmood as first secretary-general for an initial three-year term on September 23, 2026. Under General Nauman’s leadership, the secretary-general’s office can drive the alliance to formulate an integrated command, standing force or joint military machinery to operationalize the MJDA.
Fourth, the recent remarkable meeting of Pakistan Chief of Defense Forces (CDF) and Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Field Marshal Asim Munir, Saudi Arabia’s Chief of General Staff General Fayyad bin Hamed Al-Ruwaili and Turkiye Chief of General Staff General Selcuk Bayraktaroglu, in Riyadh on September 25, 2026. They reviewed the security situation and threats facing Saudi Arabia and condemned attacks targeting Mecca and the Kingdom’s civilian and economic infrastructure.
The three military chiefs expressed a shared determination to immediately translate their MJDA commitments into effective military cooperation. They discussed ways to assist Riyadh in its conflict with the Houthis and their regional allies. They also discussed techniques to deepen cooperation among their armed forces, including enhanced intelligence sharing, military coordination and integrating capabilities to strengthen deterrence and collective defense. Last week’s meeting indicates that Pakistan and Turkiye are prepared to assist Saudi Arabia against the Houthis. It is still unclear what form such aid would take. This strategic ambiguity raises doubts about the alliance’s practicality, which is not favorable for collective deterrence because a deterrence posture requires transparency.
Nevertheless, the MJDA confirms that Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye are working more closely for greater strategic autonomy through an additional layer of security.
In summary, these developments underline that significant initiatives were taken to operationalize the MJDA, boosting confidence in the three partners’ ability to translate the Agreement’s objective into an effective military deterrence and defence alliance.
—The writer is Vice Chancellor of the Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad.
