‘Don’t beg others for security’: Iran hits out at Saudi’s new defence pact
Iran has mocked the newly signed defence agreement between Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye, warning Riyadh that a pact on paper will not guarantee its security.
Ebrahim Rezaei, a member of Iran’s Parliament and its National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, criticised the agreement in a post on X, arguing that Saudi Arabia’s past reliance on the United States had also failed to provide the kingdom with lasting security.
“Saudis must know that a paper agreement with Turkey and Pakistan will not bring them security,” Rezaei said, according to NDTV. He added that years of Saudi dependence on Washington had not delivered the security Riyadh sought.
Iran questions Saudi Arabia’s new security strategy
Rezaei’s remarks came hours after Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye signed a landmark joint defence agreement in Mecca amid heightened tensions across the Middle East.
The agreement commits the three countries to treating an armed attack against any one of them as an attack against all three. The pact is being presented as a defensive arrangement aimed at strengthening deterrence and regional security.
The agreement brings together three significant Muslim-majority powers: Saudi Arabia, a major energy producer; Türkiye, a NATO member with one of the region’s largest militaries; and Pakistan, the only Muslim-majority nuclear-armed state.
‘Don’t beg others for security’, says Iranian lawmaker
Rezaei went further, suggesting that Saudi Arabia could avoid seeking security guarantees from other countries by changing its own policies.
He argued that Riyadh would not need to “beg” other nations for security if it adopted a different approach, turning the defence pact into a fresh point of friction between Tehran and Riyadh.
His comments underline Iran’s unease over the emergence of a stronger security alignment involving Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan at a time of heightened regional instability.
New defence pact reshapes regional calculations
The Mecca agreement comes against a backdrop of escalating tensions involving Iran and Gulf states. Saudi Arabia has sought to diversify its defence partnerships and strengthen its ability to deter potential threats, while Pakistan and Türkiye have deep military and strategic ties with Riyadh.
The pact does not explicitly name Iran as a target. Its signatories have described it as defensive rather than an alliance aimed at confrontation with a particular country.
However, the timing has ensured that Tehran is closely watching the new arrangement.
For Saudi Arabia, the agreement offers another layer of collective defence. For Iran, it represents a potentially significant shift in the regional security balance — one Tehran is already warning Riyadh not to mistake for a guarantee of safety.
For all the latest updates, download PGurus App.
