Symbolic imageTurkey, Qatar, Pakistan and Indonesia sign Badr defence pact
Turkey, Qatar, Pakistan and Indonesia signed a defence cooperation memorandum in Doha on Wednesday. Turkey's ruling party also plans a mandate to send military personnel to Saudi Arabia.
The "Badr Memorandum of Understanding" aims to boost defence cooperation, joint military production, technical training and research, the Turkish Defense Ministry said. Haluk Görgün, chair of Turkey's Presidency of Defense Industries, called it the foundation of strategic cooperation on joint production and technology. Analyst Arda Mevlutoglu told Al Jazeera it may signal a network of defence arrangements from the Gulf to South and Southeast Asia rather than a single formal alliance, as the lack of a US-Iran peace agreement pushes regional states to diversify their partners.
Troops mandate for Saudi Arabia
An AKP lawmaker told Reuters anonymously that the mandate will go to parliament once the bill ratifying the Mecca pact passes; the pact reached parliament on Tuesday. Turkish troops would not join offensive operations, and technical personnel and experts would first help with air defence and electronic warfare. Two officials earlier told Reuters that Turkey's contribution was expected to stay limited to equipment, intelligence sharing and weapons systems.