‘Not a paper tiger’: Turkey defends Mecca Alliance against critics

Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan said the “Mecca Alliance” between Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan had been under discussion for five or six years, but “it took time to convince countries.” Believing these nations “now understand the importance of regional cooperation and solidarity,” he criticized questions regarding the alliance’s lack of response to Ansar Allah (Houthi) attacks against Saudi Arabia, saying, “We have only just begun.”

Speaking Monday at a New York symposium titled “Turkish-US Relations on the Eve of the Centennial,” organized by the Turkish Presidency’s Directorate of Communications, Fidan clarified that the alliance emerged from lessons learned during recent regional crises and efforts led by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. “We resolve one problem in the region, and then another emerges. The region faces many problems. We therefore need to conduct an in-depth analysis of this structural problem,” he said.

According to Fidan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan have established a roadmap for the alliance, while other countries have expressed interest in joining. “Our idea is that once we institutionalize [the alliance], the invitation for other countries to join will remain open,” he said.

The joint defense agreement, signed by the three countries last month, stipulates that an armed attack against one member is considered an attack on all three. Dubbed the “Mecca Defense Pact,” its members have begun working on an institutional structure and a general secretariat, while Saudi Arabia faces Ansar Allah attacks on its territory without any intervention from member states so far.

Fidan’s statements coincide with the sixth meeting of the R4 regional parties on the sidelines of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly. The meeting included Fidan, Saudi foreign minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and foreign minister Ishaq Dar, and Egyptian foreign minister Badr Abdelatty. The ministers discussed regional developments and ways to enhance coordination among themselves.

The R4 includes the three signatories of the Mecca Alliance alongside Egypt, which participates in a broader regional consultation mechanism also used to coordinate positions on Palestine and other issues.

Responding to a question on whether the Iran-backed Ansar Allah attacks in Yemen against Saudi Arabia represent the first test for the Mecca agreement, and how the alliance handled it, Fidan pointed to the former US Ambassador to Ankara, James Jeffrey, who was in the audience, and asked him when he had joined the military.

After Jeffrey replied that it was about 50 years ago, Fidan asked him how many times he had witnessed the activation of NATO’s Article 5. The response from the audience was, “Only once.”

“No one criticizes NATO for being a ‘paper tiger,’ but when it comes to a newly established defense alliance, they point to a 10-year crisis—the Yemen crisis—and say, ‘Look, it doesn’t work.’ We have only just begun,” Fidan said.

Article 5 of the NATO treaty stipulates that collective defense is the core principle of the alliance and that any armed attack on any NATO member is considered an attack on all members. It only been activated once, on Sept. 11, 2001, when the United States announced it had been subjected to “terrorist attacks.”

However, the Ansar Allah escalation against Saudi Arabia has exposed the limits of Riyadh’s current security arrangements. The AP reported last Thursday, citing officials, that Saudi Arabia’s stockpile of interceptor missiles was running low, prompting it to request air defense support from France, the UK, Pakistan, and Egypt. Meanwhile, Ansar Allah leader Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi warned Turkey and Pakistan against providing support to Saudi Arabia.

The escalation thus comes at a highly politically sensitive moment for the alliance: Saudi Arabia wants immediate protection, while Turkey and Pakistan appear wary of being dragged into a new ground war in Yemen. 

Egypt provides political support and may be ready to enhance naval coordination without direct military commitment, while Washington’s role has so far been limited to intelligence and targeting assistance.