Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja has termed the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement a significant step toward unity among the Muslim Ummah and lasting peace in the region. Speaking on the trilateral pact signed between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye, the minister said the agreement had opened new paths of peace for the entire Muslim world and would be remembered by future generations as marking a new era defined by unity, trust and shared purpose.
The agreement was signed in Makkah by Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Prime Minister of Pakistan Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif. Khawaja said the decision by the three leaders to enter into the pact demonstrated that strong and visionary leadership has the capacity to bring nations closer together, describing the moment as one that carried lasting symbolic and strategic weight for the countries involved. The pact establishes a collective defence arrangement under which an armed attack against any one of the three states will be regarded as an attack against all three, a provision consistent with the right of individual and collective self-defence recognised under the United Nations Charter.
The minister extended what she described as a deserving tribute to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and to Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, crediting their sustained efforts and dedication for securing what she called a position of dignity for Pakistan on the international stage. She said the outcome reflected years of consistent engagement and coordination between the country’s political and military leadership, adding that this cooperation had played a prominent role in bringing the agreement to fruition. According to the minister, the achievement has contributed to a broader shift in how Pakistan is being perceived internationally, with the country increasingly recognised in connection with regional peace efforts.
Officials associated with the agreement have said it builds on nearly a year of prior negotiations and follows an existing bilateral defence arrangement between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. The formal signing took place at Al-Safa Palace in Makkah, with Prime Minister Sharif arriving in Jeddah alongside Army Chief General Asim Munir ahead of the ceremony and performing Umrah on the morning the agreement was concluded. Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has since clarified that the agreement is purely defensive in nature and not directed against any particular country, noting that it does not replace or supersede any of the three countries’ existing bilateral or multilateral commitments and remains open to other nations that may wish to join in the future.
The signing of the agreement in one of Islam’s holiest cities has been widely described as adding considerable symbolic weight to the pact, coming at a time of heightened tension across the wider region. While the practical scope of the defence cooperation envisioned under the agreement has not yet been fully detailed, officials from the three countries have indicated that it is intended to strengthen collective deterrence and expand cooperation across multiple aspects of defence policy going forward. Khawaja’s remarks reflect the broader tone adopted by members of Pakistan’s federal cabinet since the agreement was signed, with several officials framing it as a milestone moment for regional diplomacy and Muslim world solidarity.
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