Published: 01:31 AM, 30 August 2026
Bangladesh in Yes-No Situation Over Joining Mecca Defence Pact
Md. Abu Saim
The signing of the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement by Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan on 7 August 2026, in Islam’s holiest city— Mecca— undoubtedly marks a ‘historic day’ for global politics.
The defence agreement, however, had been among the most ‘hoped-for’ initiatives across the Muslim world, as the signatories— Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan— have agreed that an armed attack against one signatory will be regarded as an attack against all three, while also stressing that the pact is genuinely defensive in nature and does not target any country that does not attack its signatories.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has described its collective-defence principle as technically comparable to NATO’s Article 5. While the regional partners in the Gulf are seeking alternative sources of security beyond the US, it is equally evident that US power has faced constraints after several American bases were struck by Iran amid the US-Israel war on Iran.
The Middle East is a region that has consistently weathered wars and instability for the past century, with further turmoil arising from foreign occupations, exiles and mass displacement across the region. The Mecca Agreement, against this backdrop, addresses the longstanding absence of a stable regional security system and considers how a durable order can be established by developing institutional mechanisms within the region’s own capacities, rather than relying on alternating external powers.
For Bangladesh, joining the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement is conceivably possible— but its strongest route would be diplomacy first, a credible contribution from the outset. Dhaka need not wait for years or treat membership as a distant goal. Instead, it should demonstrate immediately why its inclusion would strengthen the emerging alliance. Its UN peacekeeping record, growing defence ties with Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan, and strategic position in the Bay of Bengal provide a strong foundation to join the defence pact. The key is to present a clear proposition to the trilateral alliance: what Bangladesh can contribute and what the alliance gains from Bangladesh.
So, it is the balance of power that has shifted in the region after the US-Israel war on Iran. The American role has receded, while the signatories, including Pakistan, have also worked to bring the warring parties to the negotiating table.
Eventually, the signatories of the Mecca Agreement have strategically calculated the changing balance of power and the need to prevent the rise of a new regional hegemony in the Middle East— whether by Iran, with its network of proxies, or Israel, with its extensive intelligence and surveillance capabilities.
The alliance, however, also looks beyond the Middle East, anticipating the possibility of bringing more countries from the Muslim world into the framework and, eventually, assuming responsibilities across the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia and Europe. As Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan noted, “Under our president's vision, we should not remain limited to three countries. We should grow and, if necessary, bring all countries under this umbrella.”
Although the alliance remains in its formative stage, it facilitates access for further inclusion of nations, much as NATO evolved from a 12-nation coalition in 1949 into a 32-member alliance in 2024.
Egypt was in the queue, but with no clear alignment with the signatories, it could not join the alliance for now. Qatar and Kuwait are next in line along with names like Azerbaijan, Syria and Jordan are also in the frame.
The Mecca agreement’s value will be measured in the ability of countries with different military structures to operate together. Operating areas include joint air defence, early warning, intelligence sharing, training, threat assessment, and a joint command able to function under cooperation. The alliance would have a strategic political and military committee comprising every country’s foreign ministers, defense ministers and chiefs of general staff, similar to NATO structures and the integration of weapons and communication systems will be a key objective after the secretariat is established. But Bangladesh’s greatest benefit could be protection under a ‘nuclear umbrella’, as NATO-like defensive alliance is also provided with this extended deterrence.
Bangladesh would also benefit from the pact’s deterrence principle; an attack on one is treated as an attack on all. This could significantly strengthen Bangladesh’s strategic deterrence.
Moreover, Bangladesh’s military capabilities could be rapidly modernized, with improved radar, drones and electronic warfare, alongside a stronger Bay of Bengal naval presence and real-time operational experience shared by partner states. Intelligence-sharing, logistics, training and defence-industry cooperation could also open new avenues for Bangladesh.
Md. Abu Saim studied Political Economics and International
Relations in Dhaka University.
