Turkey clears Mecca defense pact with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, opens door to troop deployment

Turkey’s parliament on Thursday approved the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, a mutual defense pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan that enables Ankara to deploy military support to Riyadh following cross-border attacks by Houthi militants.

Originally signed by the three nations in August, the agreement establishes a collective defense clause under which an attack on one signatory is treated as an attack on all.

According to Reuters, a ruling-party lawmaker also said Turkey's parliament would soon consider a separate mandate formally authorizing the deployment of Turkish forces to Saudi Arabia