The Mecca Joint Defense Agreement and the future of regional security

  • Mon, August 17, 2026 • 9:00 am ET
  • VIRTUAL EVENT

Experts break down how the agreement complements long-standing US objectives of greater burden sharing across partners while creating pathways for expanded defense and institutional cooperation among the three countries.

On Monday, August 17 at 9:00 a.m. ET, the Atlantic Council’s Turkey Program and Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs hosted a discussion on the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement: a trilateral mutual defense pact signed by Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan, stipulating that an attack against any one of the three signatories constitutes an attack against all.

This event gathered a panel featuring regional experts to explore how the agreement can complement long-standing US objectives of greater burden sharing across partners while also creating opportunities for expanded defense industrial and institutional cooperation among the three countries.

Welcome remarks

Defne Arslan
Senior Director, Turkey Program,
Atlantic Council

William F. Wechsler
Senior Director, Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs,
Atlantic Council

Speakers

Rabia Akhtar
Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences,
University of Lahore

Abdulaziz Alghashian
Adjunct Professor,
Naif University for Security Sciences

Bilal Y. Saab
Senior Managing Director,
TRENDS US;
Nonresident Senior Fellow, Forward Defense, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security,
Atlantic Council

Murat Yeşiltaş
Director of Foreign Policy Studies,
SETA

Moderated by

Michael Kugelman
Resident Senior Fellow, South Asia, Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs,
Atlantic Council

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