Turkiye’s strategic interests increasingly align with those of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia across South Asia, Middle East
Picture featuring Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, source: Reuters and File
Turkiye is reportedly seeking to join a strategic mutual defence agreement between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, a move that could reshape regional security dynamics in the Middle East and beyond, according to a Bloomberg report.
Citing people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg said discussions are at an advanced stage and that an agreement is likely. The defence pact, signed by Pakistan and Saudi Arabia in Riyadh in September last year, commits both countries to treat any aggression against one as an attack on both.
The report said Turkiye views the arrangement as a means to strengthen security cooperation and deterrence at a time when questions persist over the reliability of the United States and US president Donald Trump’s commitment to Nato, despite Washington’s strong military ties with all three countries.
Read: Pakistan, KSA sign defence pact
According to Bloomberg, Turkiye’s strategic interests increasingly align with those of Pakistan and Saudi Arabia across South Asia, the Middle East and parts of Africa, making its inclusion in the pact a logical expansion.
Analysts cited in the report highlighted the complementary strengths of the three countries, with Saudi Arabia providing financial resources, Pakistan offering nuclear capability, ballistic missile capacity and manpower, and Turkiye contributing military experience and a developed defence industry.
Nihat Ali Ozcan, a strategist at Ankara-based think tank TEPAV, was quoted by Bloomberg as saying that shifting regional dynamics and the fallout from ongoing conflicts were prompting countries to develop new frameworks to identify allies and security partners.
Pakistan’s information ministry and Turkiye’s defence ministry declined to comment on the development, while Saudi authorities were not immediately available for comment, Bloomberg said.
Read more: Pakistan, Turkiye to deepen ties
The report noted that Turkiye’s potential entry into the pact would underline a new phase in its relations with Saudi Arabia, following years of strained ties. The two countries are now expanding cooperation in the economic and defence sectors and recently held their first-ever naval meeting in Ankara.
Pakistan and Turkiye already maintain close defence ties. Ankara has been involved in building corvette warships for the Pakistan Navy and upgrading Pakistan Air Force F-16 fighter jets. Turkiye is also sharing drone technology with both Pakistan and Saudi Arabia and has proposed their participation in its Kaan fifth-generation fighter jet programme, according to Bloomberg.
The trilateral defence discussions follow a ceasefire between Pakistan and India that ended a brief but intense military confrontation in May 2025. Bloomberg also noted ongoing tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan, as well as mediation efforts by Turkiye and Qatar that have so far failed to yield a breakthrough.
