WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump has thrown his weight behind newly signed Pakistan-Saudi-Türkiye defence pact, calling the landmark agreement a “big, bold, important first step” toward a stronger regional security framework.
POTUS’s endorsement came in post on Truth Social, where he said he was “very happy” that Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye had finally signed the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement. The agreement, signed on August 7, carries a striking collective-defence provision: an armed attack on any one of the three countries will be treated as an attack on all three.
Deeply appreciate President Donald Trump’s kind words of support on the signing of the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement.
Together with the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Turkiye, Pakistan will continue to play a constructive role in ensuring the defence of… pic.twitter.com/qdemVBYkLq
— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) August 17, 2026
That clause has immediately drawn comparisons with Article 5 of the NATO treaty, potentially giving the trilateral arrangement significant strategic weight. However, the agreement’s publicly available details do not fully define the specific military obligations or response each member would be required to undertake if another signatory came under attack.
Trump described the pact as evidence that countries in the Middle East are moving toward greater coordination and developing stronger mechanisms to defend themselves.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif responded warmly to Trump’s statement, saying he “deeply appreciated” the US president’s supportive remarks on the agreement. Shehbaz said Pakistan, together with Saudi Arabia and Türkiye, would continue playing a constructive role in safeguarding the defence of their countries and contributing to the security of the wider region.
The prime minister also used the opportunity to praise Trump’s role in South Asian diplomacy, describing his leadership as courageous and decisive.
Shehbaz said Trump’s efforts had helped avert a potential nuclear catastrophe in South Asia and saved millions of lives, while stressing that durable peace remained essential for the region’s economic prosperity and future.
Makkah agreement is major step in defence cooperation among three strategically important Muslim-majority states. Its collective-defence pledge could give the pact considerable geopolitical significance, particularly because an attack on one signatory is formally framed as an attack on all three.
Trump hails Pakistan-Saudi Arabia-Turkiye defence agreement as ‘bold, and important first step’
