Yemen Conflict & Mecca Pact: Saudi Arabia’s massive airstrike on Houthis in Yemen! Will the tripartite ‘Maize Defense Pact’ be active? Big diplomatic challenge facing Pakistan and Turkey

Amid the ongoing military conflict in West Asia, Saudi Arabia has launched fresh airstrikes on the targets of Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. The military action comes in response to the Houthis’ blockade of pro-Saudi merchant ships in the Red Sea, missile-drone attacks on Saudi targets and attempts to target the Jazan refinery.

After this aggressive step of Saudi Arabia, now the eyes of international security experts are on the historic MoU signed between Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan on 7 August 2026. ‘Mecca Joint Defense Agreement’ But have survived. Defense analysts believe that the latest developments in Yemen are going to prove to be the first real test of the credibility and limitations of this trilateral military alliance.

The trilateral agreement, signed in Mecca by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, is designed on the lines of NATO:

• Principle of Collective Defence: The main clause of the agreement stipulates that an armed attack on any one of the three member countries will be considered an attack on all three countries.

• Balance of roles: Under this agreement, Saudi Arabia has immense financial resources, Turkey has modern deep-tech defense industry (like Bayraktar drones and air defense), while Pakistan has huge military manpower (foot soldiers) and strategic experience.

• Objective: To create an independent security network of the three major powers of the Islamic world by reducing excessive dependence on the traditional security umbrella of America.

After Saudi Arabia’s airstrike against the Houthis and the attacks on Saudi cities and oil installations by the Houthis in return, the question is arising whether Pakistan and Turkey will have to send their armies to help Saudi Arabia? According to defense experts, its immediate ‘full-scale’ activation is not so straightforward:

• Offensive vs Defensive Actions: The Mecca Pact is essentially a ‘defensive’ alliance. The pre-emptive airstrike carried out by Saudi Arabia inside Yemen cannot technically be considered a direct ‘foreign attack on Saudi Arabia’.

• Houthis are non-state actors: Traditionally treaties such as NATO have been enforced against attacks by sovereign nations. The Houthi rebels are a non-state militia. In such a situation, Turkey and Pakistan can avoid jumping into direct war by considering it as a local border conflict between Saudi-Yemen.

• Saudi needs ‘defense shield’, not war: Saudi Arabia does not need Pakistan or Turkey to send ground troops to Yemen, but instead needs Turkey’s advanced anti-drone technology, radar, missile interceptors and technical support from Pakistani air defense operators to protect its oil refineries, airports and ports.

Pakistan has joined this trilateral agreement, but this latest turn in the Yemen war has put Islamabad in a dire diplomatic and domestic dilemma:

1. 900 km border and direct confrontation with Iran: The Houthis receive open military and financial support from Iran. If Pakistan directly attacks the Houthis in support of Saudi Arabia or sends troops to the Yemen border, it will greatly strain relations with its neighbor Iran. There is already a security crisis between the two countries on the Balochistan border.

2. 2015 Parliament resolution: In 2015, when Saudi Arabia launched ‘Operation Decisive Storm’ in Yemen, Pakistan’s Parliament unanimously passed a resolution and decided to remain neutral in the Yemen war and not send its army. If the current government pushes the army into the swamp of Yemen, huge internal and political opposition will start in Pakistan.

3. Financial compulsion: Pakistan is completely dependent on Saudi Riyal for its weak economy, foreign exchange reserves and IMF bailout. Rejecting any direct demands from Riyadh could be financially suicidal for Islamabad.

There are no less challenges before Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan:

• Contradiction of NATO vs. Mecca Pact: Turkey is already an active and powerful member of NATO. If Turkey becomes deeply entangled in a conflict in the Middle East that does not have US approval, its relations with Washington and Western allies could become more complicated.

• Regional Leadership and Mediator Role: Ankara has always wanted to establish itself as a mediator and independent power in the Muslim world. An open war by one side in Yemen could weaken Turkey’s independent diplomacy in the Gulf and the Arab world.

• Strategy to be limited to technical supply: Instead of directly participating in the war, Turkey will try to complete the formality of the pact by providing its state-of-the-art anti-drone systems, electronic warfare suits and Bayraktar drone technology to Saudi Arabia.

At present, the possibility of a full-scale war declaration under the ‘Makkah Pact’ is very less. Instead the three countries could take a middle path:

• Intelligence and Logistics Sharing: Turkey and Pakistan will share satellite data, radar tracking and intelligence inputs for Saudi Arabia to monitor the Red Sea and the border with Yemen.

• Air Defense Deployment: Pakistan can deploy its Air Force and air defense technical advisors to protect important energy plants and ports of Saudi Arabia.

• Diplomatic pressure: Together, the three countries can put diplomatic pressure on Iran to prevent the Houthis from carrying out direct attacks on Saudi oil facilities and ships in the Red Sea.