On October 26th, Ali Bagheri, deputy secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, announced that senior defense officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, who are involved in the Mecca Common Defense Agreement, will visit Tehran to discuss regional security issues.
Bagheri told Iran's National Television and Radio Corporation that Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman, Pakistani Army Chief of Staff Syed Asim Munir, and Turkish National Intelligence Agency Director Ibrahim Kalin will attend the meeting.
He stated: “Iran’s defense model, based on domestic capabilities, has become a successful model for ensuring national security. Iran’s strategic policy is to ensure regional security through regional countries and to counter any foreign interference or influence led by the United States and Israel.”
Iran has not specified the exact time of this meeting. Reuters quoted two sources as saying that the meeting will take place on the 26th local time.
This is the first high-level contact between Iran and all members of the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement since the escalation of military conflicts between Saudi Arabia and Houthi forces in Yemen.
Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Turkey signed a joint defense agreement in Mecca in August this year. According to the agreement, any armed attack against any of the three countries will be considered an attack against all three countries. The signatories stated that this move is aimed at strengthening collective deterrence capabilities and military cooperation.
