Turkey is assessing how it can help Saudi Arabia defend against attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi militants under a joint defence pact with Pakistan, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday, ruling out Turkish participation in offensive operations.
Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar and Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud leave after a committee meeting of Mecca defence pact in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 5, 2026. Turkish Foreign Ministry
Turkey is assessing how it can help Saudi Arabia defend against attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi militants under a joint defence pact with Pakistan, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday, ruling out Turkish participation in offensive operations.
Turkey, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement in August, under which an armed attack on one member is considered an attack on all. The three countries have since held political and military meetings in response to the Houthi attacks.
On Monday, the countries said they had agreed to move immediately to implement their collective defence commitments and ensure the "rapid deployment" of military forces and capabilities in Saudi Arabia.
Speaking at a joint press conference with his Hungarian counterpart Anita Orban in Ankara, Fidan stressed that the pact was defensive rather than offensive, saying military officials were assessing possible contributions, particularly in air defence, electronic warfare and technical support.
"Yemen's legitimate government forces are already continuing the battle on the ground and Saudi Arabia is supporting them," Fidan said.
"But this is a defensive agreement. When a country party to the pact comes under attack, you stand by it in its defence. This is not an offensive agreement. Turkey will not send troops to another country to carry out attacks on its territory," he said.
Fidan said military delegations would determine Saudi Arabia's operational defence needs and what contributions Turkey and Pakistan could make.
On Wednesday, two officials told Reuters that Turkey was sending mainly defensive and technical support to Saudi Arabia to help its fight with Houthi militants.
Turkish officials have said any support provided at this stage would largely be in a bilateral capacity, as Turkey's parliament has not officially ratified the joint defence pact.
Fidan said on Thursday that work was largely completed for the agreement to be submitted for parliament's approval and that they aimed to send it "as soon as possible".
Turkey, which has NATO's second-largest army and a robust defence industry, has condemned the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, voiced willingness to help meet Riyadh's technical military needs, and agreed to join a Saudi-led coalition to ensure navigational safety in the Red Sea.
(Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu
The US imposed fresh sanctions on Iran on Thursday, targeting individuals, networks and 17 vessels for transporting Iranian crude, oil products and petrochemicals, the Treasury Department said, as Washington stepped up economic pressure on Tehran.
Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis escalated their campaign of strikes against Saudi Arabia on Thursday, trying to shut down the kingdom's airspace and oil facilities with missile fire that has killed three people this week.
Intensifying attacks by Russia and Ukraine ahead of the winter are further endangering navigational safety in the Black Sea, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday, adding that world powers must not allow the region to be turned into a new front in the war.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.