Pakistan’s foreign policy may be entering a consequential new phase. For decades, the country was viewed largely through the prism of its security challenges: a frontline state in a turbulent neighbourhood, a nuclear-armed country facing a difficult strategic environment and a participant in successive regional conflicts.
A different Pakistan is now beginning to emerge and the most striking expression of this transformation is the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye.
At their first Strategic Political and Defence Committee meeting in Istanbul on August 31, the three countries moved towards institutionalising the arrangement, agreeing to establish a permanent secretariat in Saudi Arabia, initially headed by a Pakistani secretary general for three years. They also committed themselves to stronger military cooperation, defence-industry collaboration, joint technology development and production, while emphasising de-escalation and peaceful resolution of crises. What is emerging, therefore, deserves to be viewed as more than another military agreement. It could become an important new experiment in collective security among major Muslim powers.
Pakistan has traditionally been described as a security-dependent state. Yet its military capabilities, counterterrorism experience, strategic geography and diplomatic relationships give it something increasingly valuable: the ability to contribute to regional security.
This is the essence of becoming a net security provider. Credible deterrence can create the space in which diplomacy becomes possible.
Pakistan’s experience gives it particular credibility. It has fought one of the world’s most difficult counterterrorism campaigns, maintained one of the region’s most capable militaries and developed relationships across competing geopolitical camps. Its geography places it at the intersection of South Asia, Central Asia, the Gulf and the wider Muslim world. That combination makes Pakistan potentially more useful as a connecting state than merely as a frontline state.
The second transformation is perhaps even more important. Military diplomacy is often misunderstood as diplomacy conducted through military strength. At its most effective, however, it is diplomacy made possible by credible strength. Pakistan’s recent diplomatic engagement in the Iran-US crisis demonstrated the value of maintaining communication across difficult divides. This is where Pakistan can offer something distinctive to the Muslim world: the combination of hard-power credibility, diplomatic finesse,and political access.
The prime minister and deputy prime minister deserve big applause but the person who anchored it to success was COAS-CDF Field Marshal Asim Munir. His engagement with Saudi and Turkish leadership, alongside the political leadership and Foreign Office, has coincided with an unusually intense period of strategic diplomacy for Pakistan. But the larger lesson should be institutional rather than personal.
Pakistan should use the present momentum to build structures in which military credibility, professional diplomacy and economic strategy reinforce one another. The Makkah framework provides an opportunity to create precisely such an architecture. The arrangement could evolve into a platform through which participating countries consult during regional crises, coordinate diplomatic positions and, where possible, offer mediation before conflicts become wars.
This would give collective security a distinctly preventive character. And that is where the agreement could acquire a much larger significance for the Muslim world. Rather than becoming a bloc against a particular country, it can develop around three principles: collective security, peaceful dispute resolution and strategic autonomy. Pakistan has stressed that the agreement is defensive, not directed against any country, and open to countries sharing its commitments and common security interests.
The natural question is how far this architecture could eventually extend. Turkiye has indicated that the arrangement is open to expansion, while Egypt has emerged as a possible future participant. Egypt would bring considerable military weight, geographical reach and influence across the Arab and African worlds. Beyond Egypt, other Muslim countries possess capabilities that could add different dimensions: maritime strength, financial resources, technological expertise, demographic weight, geographical access or diplomatic influence. Southeast Asian Muslim powers could contribute maritime and economic capabilities; Gulf states could add investment and technology; Central Asian states could provide another strategic bridge.
There is an even more consequential possibility; keeping the diplomatic door open to countries who share the same philosophy. A couple of immediate accession would be politically difficult and probably premature. But Iran could, at an appropriate time, participate first in areas such as maritime security, border management, humanitarian response, energy security or crisis communication.
That possibility matters because it would show that the Makkah framework is not designed to contain any particular country. Its defining question would instead be: what common security objectives are Muslim countries prepared to pursue together? Beyond security there are economic, political and technological dividends. Saudi Arabia possesses enormous financial resources and investment capacity. Turkiye has developed a formidable defence-industrial and technological ecosystem. Pakistan brings a large skilled manpower base, substantial military experience, strategic geography and an increasingly capable defence industry. Put together, these strengths can produce much more than deterrence.
The Makkah framework already envisages robust defence-industry cooperation, joint technology development and production.
The objective should now be to convert strategic trust into factories, exports, technology transfer , human development and employment. Every major strategic agreement should eventually have an economic scorecard: how much investment has been generated, how many jobs created, what technologies transferred, what products exported and what new markets opened.
The Muslim world possesses immense human, financial, technological and geographical resources, but these remain fragmented. Defence cooperation is dispersed. Economic partnerships often proceed separately from strategic cooperation. Political consultations rarely translate into permanent institutional mechanisms. The Makkah framework could help connect these dimensions.
Over time, its agenda could encompass humanitarian response, food and energy security, health emergencies, climate disasters, cyber threats, education, skills and emerging technologies. For Pakistan, the opportunity is particularly significant. Its security environment with India remains challenging, while instability along its western frontier continues to impose enormous costs.
Stronger strategic partnerships can enhance deterrence, reduce diplomatic isolation and create greater room for economic and political manoeuvre. But the purpose should not be to create enemies. The objective should be to make conflict less attractive and cooperation more rewarding. Pakistan’s greatest foreign-policy opportunity may, therefore, be to redefine itself as a country capable of providing security, enabling peace and connecting regions.
The writer is a former federal health minister. He tweets/posts @DrNadeemjan and can be reached at: [email protected]
