Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan to hold first defense pact conference

ISTANBUL- Top officials from Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan will gather in Istanbul on Monday for a first committee meeting under the joint defense accord that they signed this month, a Turkish foreign ministry source said.

The "Mecca Joint Defense Agreement", signed on August 7, brought together Sunni Muslim US allies concerned by the Iran war and regional conflict that has led to Iranian missile fire on Gulf oil exporters.

It is intended to strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggression and stipulates that an armed attack against any of the three would be regarded as an attack on all, similar to NATO's Article 5 collective defense clause.

Foreign and defense ministers, as well as the chiefs of staff, of the three countries will attend the meeting in Istanbul, the ministry source said.

"International security issues will be on the agenda," the source said, with discussions expected to cover enhancing defense capabilities, greater interoperability among their armed forces and deepening cooperation in the defense industry, including joint production and development.

The three nations share concerns about the military stances of Israel and revolutionary Shi'ite Iran, as long-time ally the U.S. struggles to contain regional upheaval that has caused a global energy crisis.

Six months after the U.S. and Israel launched the war against Iran, negotiations are at an impasse and President Donald Trump's administration has stepped up efforts to punish Iran financially with what it has billed as an "economic D-Day".

Turkey, which has NATO's second-largest military, has said the pact with nuclear-armed Pakistan and top oil exporter Saudi Arabia was open to expansion — with Egypt as a potential candidate — and did not seek to replace existing alliances.

Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Writing by Daren Butler; Editing by Alexandra Hudson/Reuters