Turkey's parliament ratifies the Mecca agreement
The Turkish parliament has ratified the Mecca agreement on joint defense concluded by Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan.
Approval of the document was supported by a majority of deputies in the 600-seat legislature, the TRT Haber television channel reported.
279 deputies voted in favor and 119 against, according to the data on the results.
The bill on ratification of the Mecca agreement was submitted to parliament by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Under local legislation, all international acts are subject to approval in parliament, which also issues the mandate for sending a military contingent abroad.
The Mecca agreement was signed on August 7 by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. On October 5, the parties to the agreement decided to move to practical implementation of the joint defense commitments and to take measures for the deployment of agreed military forces and assets in Saudi Arabia.
