Turkey’s foreign minister says Ankara weighing Saudi defense support, rules out offensive role

ANKARA — Turkey is assessing how it can help Saudi Arabia defend against attacks by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi militants under a joint defense pact with Pakistan, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday, ruling out Turkish participation in offensive operations.

Turkey, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement in August, under which an armed attack on one member is considered an attack on all. The three countries have since held political and military meetings in response to the Houthi attacks.

On Monday, the countries said they had agreed to move immediately to implement their collective defense commitments and ensure the “rapid deployment” of military forces and capabilities in Saudi Arabia.

Speaking at a joint press conference with his Hungarian counterpart Anita Orban in Ankara, Fidan stressed that the pact was defensive rather than offensive, saying military officials were assessing possible contributions, particularly in air defense, electronic warfare and technical support.

“Yemen’s legitimate government forces are already continuing the battle on the ground and Saudi Arabia is supporting them,” Fidan said.

“But this is a defensive agreement. When a country party to the pact comes under attack, you stand by it in its defense. This is not an offensive agreement. Turkey will not send troops to another country to carry out attacks on its territory,” he said.

Fidan said military delegations would determine Saudi Arabia’s operational defense needs and what contributions Turkey and Pakistan could make.

On Wednesday, two officials told Reuters that Turkey was sending mainly defensive and technical support to Saudi Arabia to help its fight with Houthi militants.

Turkish officials have said any support provided at this stage would largely be in a bilateral capacity, as Turkey’s parliament has not officially ratified the joint defense pact.

Fidan said on Thursday that work was largely completed for the agreement to be submitted for parliament’s approval and that they aimed to send it “as soon as possible.”

Turkey, which has NATO’s second-largest army and a robust defense industry, has condemned the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, voiced willingness to help meet Riyadh’s technical military needs, and agreed to join a Saudi-led coalition to ensure navigational safety in the Red Sea.