Hard to know quite what to make of this, or how much to make of it. But we’re getting what may be a preview of elements of a new era in the Middle East. According to a just released communiqué, Turkey and Pakistan will be sending troops to Saudi Arabia under the three countries’ new “Mecca Pact” to assist with fighting the Houthis in Yemen. The statement is very short on details. So it’s not clear whether this is a meaningful deployment of manpower and resources or something more nominal and symbolic. Nor is the timing of any deployment clear.
To the extent this is real it’s part of longer-standing trends. But the effects of the US/Israel/Iran war are clearly key. Saudi Arabia can’t easily defend itself against the emerging Houthi blockade along the Red Sea – notwithstanding its vast supply of high dollar, high dollar weaponry from the US. That used to be the US’s job – defending Saudi Arabia. But Trump has refused. So this new alliance could be in the process of becoming more than mere signatures on paper.
