Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan signed a "joint defense agreement" at a summit in Mecca on Friday. On Saturday, Turkey indicated that Egypt could also join the pact. For now, the alliance is intended primarily to serve as a counterweight to the Iranian axis, but no less importantly, to create a new center of gravity that bolsters the power of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The two leaders are not looking only toward Tehran and its terrorist proxies in Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen. Saudi dissatisfaction with the alliance between Israel and the United Arab Emirates has been apparent for some time. The Saudis, who regard themselves as the leaders of the Gulf, appear intent on strengthening their position against the Emiratis. To that end, bin Salman is prepared to consolidate his standing through an Islamic axis that could overshadow Abu Dhabi. Turkey, likewise, is seeking to build an Islamic axis as a counterweight to Israel's regional power.
Officially, the three countries said they sought to "strengthen collective deterrence" and expand defense cooperation. The agreement also stipulates that "any armed attack against any one of the three states shall be regarded as an attack against them all." Erdogan stressed that the agreement merely reaffirmed the countries' right to self-defense and "targets no country." On the contrary, he said, it was open to other countries seeking "peace, prosperity and stability" in the region. From his perspective, however, Israel is chiefly among those that do not fall into that category.
Qatar welcomed the agreement. Former Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, a member of the ruling family, described it as an important and encouraging step. "I hope the remaining GCC states will take the initiative to join it, so that it becomes the beginning of an effective awakening towards a shared defence strategy in defence manufacturing, armament, planning and operational preparedness to confront the ambitions and threats facing the region," he wrote, referring to the Gulf Cooperation Council. For Doha, bringing Pakistan and Turkey into the arrangement strengthens the Islamist axis.
Saudi commentators have also pointed to the new opportunities created by the agreement, particularly for the development of defense industries. One Saudi commentator identified with the government wrote that Turkey has an advanced defense industry and Pakistan considerable military and technological expertise, while Saudi Arabia brings investment capacity, market share and a strategic location. Cooperation, he said, could be expanded to drones, missile and air-defense systems, radar, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and satellites.
In the near term, however, the defense pact does not appear to have done much to deter Yemen's Houthis. Mahdi al-Mashat, chairman of the Houthi-controlled Supreme Political Council in Yemen, threatened Riyadh over the weekend, saying the group's "siege for siege" equation would continue until its objectives were achieved.
Referring to the new defense alliance, al-Mashat said anyone seeking to participate in what he called Saudi aggression and the continuing blockade was itself an aggressor, even if its involvement was dressed up under impressive-sounding slogans. He said Houthi-controlled Yemen's laws determined how hostile states would be treated. "Even if you mobilize the entire world on your side, it will do you no good," he warned. "The cost of peace is lower than the price of war."
The Houthis did not stop at rhetoric. Over the weekend, they carried out another attack against Yemeni forces backed by Saudi Arabia. If Riyadh wants to deter them, it will need a little more than regional agreements.
