The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, Hakan Fidan, has reiterated the strictly defensive nature of the Defense Agreement of Mecca, in which Saudi Arabia and Pakistan also participate. During a joint press conference in Ankara, he emphasized that Ankara will not allow offensives to be initiated from abroad with Turkish troops and indicated that "the necessary procedures have already been completed" to elevate the pact to the Turkish Parliament.
Fidan explained that the mechanism provided in the agreement is activated only when one of the signatory states is the subject of external aggression. "If a country that is part of the agreement is attacked, it is supported for its defense. This is not an attack agreement," the head of Turkish diplomacy specified, emphasizing that the text is based on reciprocal defense if any of the members becomes a victim of an attack.
In the same vein, he insisted that Turkey's role within this framework is to "provide support" to any member state that suffers aggression, without this implying a blank check for the Turkish Army to cross borders with the aim of launching offensives on foreign territory.
"This is not an attack agreement. Turkey will not send its troops to the territory of another country to launch an attack there. It is a defense agreement," he reiterated, thus closing the door to interpretations that present the pact as a tool for offensive operations.
In light of internal criticisms, Fidan denounced that "the cheap political rhetoric that sometimes arises here does not correspond to reality," referring to speeches that question the nature of the agreement or attribute different purposes to those outlined in the text.
Regarding the increase in tension in the Middle East, the minister assured that the Turkish government is "doing everything possible to resolve this situation through peace and dialogue," defending a negotiated solution to the regional crisis.
These manifestations occur after the forces of the coalition led by Saudi Arabia, which supports the internationally recognized government of Yemen, have reported attacks against more than 80 "legitimate military targets belonging to the Houthi terrorist militia," including "ballistic missile sites," in various areas of the north and west of the country under rebel control. The coalition has presented these operations as a direct response to Houthi aggressions against the Saudi airports of Riyadh and Abha.