Pakistan to Sign Defence Industry Pact With Qatar, TurkiyePakistan

Turkish Defence Minister Yasar Guler will travel to Doha for the signing. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who is also in Doha for the security forum, is expected to represent Pakistan at the ceremony, the report said.

Earlier, Naqvi met his Qatari counterpart, Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, who also commands Qatar’s Internal Security Force, the Lekhwiya. The two ministers discussed the current regional situation and matters concerning regional peace and stability, the state-run APP news agency reported. During their meeting, the two sides agreed to expand the security partnership between Pakistan and Qatar and held detailed discussions on expanding cooperation in areas related to internal security.

<h2>The Makkah defence pact</h2> The Doha signing comes as Türkiye submitted the Makkah defence pact to its parliament for ratification, moving Ankara closer to a formal mutual defence pledge with Riyadh. Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye signed the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement in August, under which an armed attack on one member is considered an attack on all — a provision similar to NATO&#8217;s Article 5 that refers to Article 51 of the UN Charter, which covers the individual or collective right of self-defence against armed attacks.

The agreement will enter into force upon the deposit of ratification documents with the secretariat in Riyadh, and the parties may not withdraw from the agreement for the first 10 years. While Pakistan has already ratified the treaty under its executive-led treaty-making system, Türkiye still requires formal parliamentary ratification.

A Turkish official, who spoke to Reuters on the condition of anonymity, said Ankara&#8217;s contribution under the alliance was expected to be limited to military equipment, intelligence sharing and weapons systems, adding that no other form of deployment had taken place under the alliance so far. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said the Makkah Agreement was not an &#8220;offensive agreement&#8221;, adding that Türkiye would not send troops to another country to carry out attacks on its territory.

Egypt&#8217;s parliament, which is not part of the Makkah alliance, is also expected to vote on October 26 on authorising potential military support for Saudi Arabia, Dawn reported.