Erdogan Wants More Countries to Join the “Mecca Agreement"

Photo: Collected

News Desk: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement will not remain limited to Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan. He expressed hope that more countries in the region would eventually join the agreement.

In an interview with the Arab newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat on Wednesday (August 12), Erdogan said, “Our goal is not limited to these three countries. We want to expand it and, if possible, one day bring all countries in the region under this framework. This would be one of the most important steps toward achieving long-term regional stability.”

Erdogan said that although tensions between the United States and Iran are important to the regional situation, the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement should not be viewed merely as a response to those tensions. Such an interpretation, he said, would fail to properly reflect the policies and intentions of the countries involved.

Emphasizing that the agreement poses no threat to any country, the Turkish president said it remains open to the participation of all “brotherly countries” that seek peace, prosperity, and stability.

Erdogan said the agreement has a long history, adding that discussions on the issue had been ongoing for a considerable period with the other signatories as well as several other countries in the region.

Referring to his earlier remarks about regularly consulting with regional countries to strengthen peace, stability, and security, Erdogan said Turkey had been acting accordingly.

He said they were aware of the devastating consequences caused by externally imposed solutions to regional problems. For this reason, Turkey has consistently followed a policy in which the will and collective wisdom of regional countries play the central role in decision-making.

According to Erdogan, the agreement reflects a strategic decision shaped by the changing regional circumstances. It is not an immediate response to any day-to-day development.

Agreement Result of a New Regional Environment

Erdogan said the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement was a product of the region’s new circumstances and stemmed from the participating countries’ shared sense of responsibility.

He said Turkey had always supported the principle that regional countries should take responsibility for their own problems and resolve them among themselves. “The problems of this region must be resolved by the actors of the region themselves. We can say that we have now taken the first step in that direction,” he said.

Erdogan also noted that recent developments had made the need for solidarity among friendly and brotherly countries even clearer.

He emphasized that the agreement goes beyond cooperation among Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan. According to him, it has been designed as a broader framework for regional stability, with its doors open to other countries seeking peace and security.

Erdogan said Ankara views the agreement as the beginning of a new era of regional cooperation and solidarity.