Kathmandu— Top officials from Turkiye, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan will gather in Istanbul on Monday for their inaugural meeting following the signing of the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement earlier this month. The meeting will be attended by foreign ministers, defence ministers, and chiefs of staff from each country to formally establish a political and defence strategic committee.

Agenda Details

The agenda for the Istanbul meeting includes discussions on international security issues and improving military cooperation and capabilities. According to Turkish Foreign Ministry sources quoted by Reuters, this committee will be comprised of national representatives from each country.

Mecca Joint Defence Agreement Overview

The Mecca agreement forms a collective security pact similar to NATO, under which an attack on one member could be considered an attack on all. The alliance was established following the United States-Israel war on Iran. Turkiye possesses the second-largest military in NATO, Pakistan is the only nuclear-armed Muslim country, and Saudi Arabia is the world’s leading oil exporter.

Potential Expansion

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has previously stated that Egypt could potentially join the pact. Bangladesh has also expressed interest in joining the agreement. The potential expansion of this alliance is being closely monitored by India, whose Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Randhir Jaiswal, told reporters that New Delhi would take all necessary steps to safeguard its national security.

(With inputs from Al Jazeera)

Originally published on abcnews.com.np.