On The Way To An ‘Islamic NATO’? Turkey Advances Towards Membership In Saudi-Pakistan Defense Pact

Peloni:  Was the US extension of blanket protections to Qatar and Saudi Arabia an attempt to offset their forming these type of alliances…

N. Mozes | MEMRI | Jan 21, 2025

In January 2026, there were multiple reports in international and regional media about advanced contacts in the matter of Turkey joining the Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement (SMDA) between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Similar to the NATO Treaty, the SMDA, signed September 17, 2025, includes an article stating that any attack on one of the parties is to be considered an attack on the other. This includes Pakistan’s provision of a nuclear umbrella for Saudi Arabia.[1]

It should be noted that over the years, there has been close security and economic cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, which has included also deployment of Pakistani forces on Saudi territory, joint military exercises, and even a report of discussions on military nuclear cooperation.[2] Pakistan and Turkey have also held joint security exercises, with Pakistan benefiting from Turkey’s developed military industry. It is also notable that while Saudi-Turkish relations have had their ups and downs over the years,[3] they are recently becoming closer.

A mutual tripartite agreement between three Islamic countries that, between them, command wealth, nuclear capabilities and advance military industries, will signal a significant leap in relations among the three countries and in their status in the region, and could shift the balance of power in the region and worldwide.

Likewise, such a tripartite alliance could be a first step on the path to an “Islamic NATO” – an idea that has come up repeatedly at times of regional crisis. Pakistan itself raised this idea only recently: After the signing of the SMDA, Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said that the other Arab countries could also join the agreement, adding that there should be an Islamic pact similar to NATO.[4]

There has been scant coverage in Arab media of these developments, and Saudi Arabia itself only published one article on the subject – about an article on it by Bloomberg, which was the first to write about contacts among the three countries. However, media in Qatar, which has a strategic security alliance with Turkey, covered it widely, hastening to welcome reports on possible Turkish membership in the SMDA. Qatar even called for the agreement’s expansion to include Egypt, and likewise expressed the need for an Islamic NATO.

It should be noted that Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Aal Nahyan, president of the UAE – which is currently at odds with Saudi Arabia amid disputes concerning Yemen – visited India, Pakistan’s rival, at the head of a high-ranking delegation. It may be that this visit was a message about the UAE’s intention to establish an alliance to oppose a tripartite SMDA.

The following will review reports about Turkey’s contacts about its possible membership in the Saudi-Pakistani SMDA:

Senior Pakistani And Turkish Officials Confirm That Contacts Are Underway

As noted, a preliminary report on contacts concerning Turkey’s joining the SMDA was published by Bloomberg and claimed that the talks are at a very advanced stage and “a deal is very likely.” It added that no response had been received from representatives of the three countries.[5]

A few days later, Pakistani and Turkish officials began releasing additional details. Pakistan’s Minister for Defense Production, Reza Hayat Haraj, confirmed to Reuters reports on contacts among the three, saying, “The Pakistan-Saudi Arabia-Turkey trilateral agreement is something that is already in pipeline. The draft agreement is already available with us… And all three countries are deliberating. And this agreement has been there for the last 10 months.” He also claimed that this agreement would be “separate” from the bilateral SMDA but gave no further details.[6]

Turkish Foreign Minister Haken Fidan confirmed that talks have been held on an agreement but stressed that it had not yet been signed. Adding that there was a need for broader regional cooperation and trust, ?he said that issues in the region could ?be resolved if ?relevant countries would “be sure of each other.” He also said that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an’s “vision is broader, more comprehensive and aimed at establishing a larger platform.”[7]

The Qatari Al-Jazeera website quoted Turkish security officials as saying that such a tripartite pact would provide each of the countries with a strong and effective security system, in light of the rapid developments and changes in the region and the world. In another Al-Jazeera report,  Turkish security sources underlined Pakistan’s nuclear capability and Saudi Arabia’s economic and political power as Turkey’s motivations for joining such an alliance. They said that Turkey’s contribution to the deal includes its advanced military industries and military strength, which they said is considered the sixth largest in the world.

With regard to the possibility that additional countries would join the alliance, the same Turkish sources  said that this “is not on the agenda at the moment” and that the sides are currently discussing a “narrow military alliance.” They also noted that Turkey does not view this alliance as a replacement for its membership in NATO.[8]

Saudi State Daily: Advanced Talks On Turkish Membership In SMDA

It should be noted that as of this writing, no official Saudi position has been published. However, the state daily Okaz gave semiofficial confirmation of the Bloomberg report, under the headline “‘Advanced’ Talks to Include Turkey in the Saudi-Pakistani ‘Strategic’ Alliance that Will Create a New Defensive Reality in the Middle East.” The article stated that on October 3, 2025, Pakistani Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar told Pakistani lawmakers that countries, whom he did not name, seek to join the SMDA. The report added that on January 10, 2026 the Pakistani Daily Times had reported that Turkey’s NATO membership would gain a deeper strategic dimension if this country were to join the SMDA.[9]

A call for establishing a powerful Arab-Islamic coalition also appeared in an article by journalist Talal Al-Qashqari, in the Saudi government daily Al-Madina. Al-Qashqari pointed to the danger posed by the “Zionist crescent,” calling it more dangerous than the Shi’ite crescent due to its imperialist political and economic aspirations, which it plans to carry out by sowing “rifts” and “division.” He appealed to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the Arab League, and the Oraganization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to “consider the dangers, build a loyal and strong coalition, and purge members that are [in fact] enemies, and even opt for offense instead of [merely] self-defense…”[10]

Calls In Qatar To Include Egypt In An ‘Islamic NATO’

As noted, as of this writing, no responses have been identified from most Arab countries to the reports of Turkey joining the SMDA, other than from Qatar, which maintains close strategic, economic, and military ties with Turkey. Turkey provides Qatar with a defense umbrella, which entails the deployment of Turkish military forces to Qatar’s territory.[11] It is therefore unsurprising that Qatar is encouraging Turkey’s inclusion in alliances with entities in the region, and that it even mediated the renewal of relations between Turkey and Egypt following a longtime rift – a move which resulted in military cooperation between the two countries.

Thus, Qatar’s former prime minister, Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber, welcomed reports that Tukey was likely joining the SMDA, urged to include Egypt in the agreement as well, calling this an “urgent necessity,” and called to include GCC member states too. He wrote on his X account: “The strategic security agreement signed by Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in September 2025, which Turkey may join, is in my opinion an important step for defending and strengthening the region against Arab and Muslim entities, among others.

He went on to state that “an alliance between Saudi-Arabia, Pakistan, Turkey, and Egypt has long been an urgent necessity in our eyes, in order to preserve our interests and make our countries stronger in face of the accelerating changes taking place in NATO countries and especially the U.S.. May the Gulf countries join this alliance soon. As very small countries, doing so is very much in their interest.”

He emphasized that this alliance is not against Iran, “since it is also a large Muslim country”, and called for expanding the agreement into “a wider framework that includes military, economic, and political components.”[12]

It should be noted that even before reports emerged of Israel’s attack on the building housing top Hamas officials in Doha on September 9, 2025, calls were heard in Qatar for forming an “Islamic NATO.” These calls intensified following the attack.

Dr. Abdullah Khalifa Al-Shayji, a columnist for the Qatari state daily Al-Sharq, wrote on September 21, 2025, just a few days after the signing of the SMDA, that this was “a step in the right direction towards forming a strong Arab-Islamic coalition with Pakistan, the only nuclear country in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.” He added: “If Turkey, with its growing military capabilities, especially in the field of drones, joins this growing coalition – which constitutes an unprecedented security turning point – especially considering that Turkey is a primary NATO member state and has the second largest army in that organization after the American army, this would become an anchor for an Arab-Islamic deterrence alliance…”[13]

In a similar vein, Dr. Ali Al-Qaradaghi, chairman of the Qatar-funded and -backed International Union of Islamic Scholars (IUMS), called in a statement published on the IUMS website for “widening the circle and including more Islamic countries, such as Turkey, which is making great strides in developing its military industries; Qatar, which has advanced financial and scientific possibilities; Indonesia, which has military and logistical capabilities; as well as countries like Malaysia and Nigeria, to form a comprehensive military and economic Islamic coalition.” He added: “Such a coalition would begin with countries that believe in unity and will become a de-facto ‘Islamic NATO’ that will defend the ummah’s sovereignty and independence, and deter aggression…”[14]

Qatar’s state press echoed Turkey’s willingness to join such an array. Thus, Dr. Ahmet Uysal, a Turkish national who lectures at Qatar University, published an article in the Qatari state daily Al-Sharq on September 15 in which he claimed that the Israeli attack in Doha proves that the U.S. cannot be relied upon to stop Israeli “aggression.” Thus, he said, “there is a need for an ‘Islamic NATO’ in the Middle East, stretching from Syria to Sudan, and from North Africa to the Gulf, to safeguard the security and stability of the region. Pakistan, Malaysia, and central Asian countries can take part, too. Turkey, which does not fully trust NATO, can also join the Islamic NATO, which is intended to reduce tensions and internal conflicts between its members, while finding shared solutions to repel external attacks… We can start with establishing a regional security forum for the Middle East, similar to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe…”[15]

*N. Mozes is a research fellow at MEMRI.