Syria considering entry into Mecca defence pact, says foreign minister

What the report says

Syria is evaluating whether to join the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain on Saturday, according to Al Jazeera’s report based on AFP and Anadolu. The pact was signed in August by Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan in Mecca and says an attack on one member would be treated as an attack on all three. The arrangement has been presented as a regional security framework and has drawn comparisons to NATO-style mutual defence commitments.

Al-Shaibani said discussions were under way to assess Syria’s participation and described Syria as part of the region’s security architecture. He said Damascus supports efforts that aim to protect regional stability and backed the Saudi-backed, internationally recognised government in Yemen in its conflict with the Houthi movement. The minister also urged support for state sovereignty and territorial unity.

The possible alignment comes as Saudi Arabia faces continued Houthi attacks from Yemen, while Turkiye has said its ratification process for the pact is still ongoing. Al Jazeera noted that Turkish officials have said any future support for Riyadh would not involve Turkish troops being sent to Yemen. The report also said Saudi Arabia has become an important backer of Syria’s new government under President Ahmed al-Sharaa after Bashar al-Assad’s fall in December 2024.

Separately, al-Shaibani accused Israel of carrying out more than 1,000 attacks on Syria in less than two years, saying this complicates claims about enforcing border control and state authority.