The Power of the Mecca Agreement: Can Azerbaijan Join This Alliance?

In the latest edition of the "Military Chronicle" section on Baku TV, the military potential, geopolitical significance, and possible consequences for Azerbaijan of the mutual defense agreement signed between Turkey, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia were analyzed.

It is reported that according to the Mecca Agreement, an armed attack on any of the parties will be considered an attack on the other participants as well. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan stated that from a technical standpoint, this mechanism is similar to NATO's Article 5.

Ankara and Islamabad emphasized that the agreement is not directed against any specific country and is defensive in nature. It is noted that in total, the three states have 1 million 388 thousand active military personnel, and including reserve forces, this figure is approximately 2 million 300 thousand people.

The military aviation fleet includes more than 3,400 aircraft, including over 800 fighter jets, and the ground forces have approximately 6,000 tanks. The combined defense spending of the three countries exceeds 124 billion dollars.

At the same time, it is emphasized that calling the agreement a "Muslim NATO" is not entirely accurate, since in this case there is no unified command or integrated military structure characteristic of the North Atlantic Alliance. Nevertheless, Turkey's defense industry and NATO experience, Pakistan's large army and nuclear capability, as well as Saudi Arabia's financial resources allow this trio to form a serious military potential.

It is noted that the new mechanism is also of interest to Azerbaijan. Turkey and Pakistan are Baku's closest strategic partners, with whom it maintains intensive military cooperation.

Currently, there is no official decision on Azerbaijan's accession to the agreement. However, the question of whether the new security architecture will be expanded in the future and what position Baku will occupy on this map remains important from the standpoint of the region's military-political landscape.