Türkiye and Pakistan to Deploy Troops to Saudi Arabia Amid Rising Middle East Tensions

Türkiye and Pakistan are preparing to deploy troops to Saudi Arabia following a request from Riyadh, a move framed as a defensive measure against Iran and its allies. The decision emerged from a meeting of the Strategic Political and Defense Committee under the Mecca Agreement, held in Riyadh on October 5, 2026. The joint statement released after the meeting emphasized the rapid deployment of military forces to Saudi Arabia, citing unverified claims of threats to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The Ansar Allah movement, or Houthis, in Yemen has denied these allegations, asserting that their attacks target only military and oil infrastructure.

The Mecca Agreement, signed on August 7, 2026, models itself after NATO’s Article 5, treating an attack on one signatory as an attack on all. The agreement’s full text remains unpublished, and its implementation in Türkiye requires parliamentary ratification. The deployment is part of a broader escalation in the Middle East, where the US and Israel are preparing for a new phase in their conflict with Iran. Saudi Arabia has already opened its bases to US operations against Iran, while the US Navy has blockaded Iranian ports since July.

Opposition to the Mecca Agreement and the troop deployment is strong in Türkiye, where a survey showed 93.2% of respondents opposed US and Israeli attacks on Iran. Critics argue that the agreement chains the working classes of the signatory countries to imperialist conflicts, offering no protection but instead drawing them into broader regional warfare. The move risks further destabilizing the Middle East, with the potential to engulf neighboring countries, including Iran, which shares land borders with both Türkiye and Pakistan.