Pakistan to hold emergency Riyadh meeting on Houthi attacks and political outreach

An emergency meeting of the Strategic Political Defence Committee, created under the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, will be convened in Riyadh next week to discuss the latest Houthi attacks on Saudi territory and the possibility of political dialogue with the group, according to Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar. Dar emphasized a preference for diplomatic engagement rather than kinetic measures and noted that over six countries are keen to join the trilateral pact, though admission will be delayed until the agreement becomes fully functional, a timeline that may extend up to a year.

The pact, signed on August 7 by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, commits the signatories to treat an armed assault on any one as an attack on all. Since its inception, the partners have begun implementing its mechanisms, holding a first Strategic Political and Defence Committee meeting in Istanbul on August 31 and establishing a secretariat in Saudi Arabia. The upcoming Riyadh session follows a recent wave of Houthi strikes that have put the new defence arrangement under pressure. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Dar, and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan also met in New York to condemn attacks on Mecca and Saudi civilian and economic infrastructure, reaffirming Riyadh's right to self-defence under Article 51 of the UN Charter.