The signing of a new defense agreement between Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan — dubbed the "Mecca Pact" — amounts to a geopolitical earthquake that undermines the core narrative of Greek foreign policy, the Greek daily Estia reported, forcing Athens, Nicosia, Tel Aviv and New Delhi to reassess their strategic balances in the wider region.
According to Estia, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan described the pact's mutual defense clause as analogous to NATO's Article 5, stressing that any armed attack against one signatory would be treated as an attack against all. The three countries plan to establish joint political and military mechanisms involving their defense and foreign ministers and military leadership, alongside joint exercises and potential co-production and technology transfers in the defense industry — moves that could grant Ankara a permanent foothold in the Arabian Peninsula should ambitions for a "Muslim NATO" materialize.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif have publicly called for the alliance's expansion, with Qatar already mentioned as a possible member. Estia noted that Turkish participation in a collective deterrence mechanism with the Gulf's largest economy and the Muslim world's only nuclear power also opens vast markets for Turkey's defense industry.
The development has caused visible embarrassment in Athens, which has invested heavily in its relationship with Riyadh. Since 2021, Greece has deployed a Patriot missile battery with personnel to protect critical Saudi infrastructure — a mission with a genuinely operational character, Estia recalled, most recently intercepting and downing two drones from Yemen near Yanbu on July 25. The status of that mission is now changing: while the Defense Ministry says the review process was discussed at the national security council (KYSEA) back in March, the activation of monthly extensions functions as diplomatic pressure toward Riyadh — a signal that Greek assistance cannot be taken for granted while Saudi Arabia allies militarily with Ankara.
Estia reported that the pact triggered fierce reactions from opposition parties, which accuse the government of failing its "reliable ally" doctrine and demand the immediate return of the Patriot battery, its roughly 100 Greek personnel, and the withdrawal of the Greek frigate from the Red Sea. The Maximos Mansion is keeping a low public profile, describing the trilateral deal as purely defensive, though the matter will be examined thoroughly at an upcoming KYSEA meeting.
Particular concern in Athens, the paper added, centers on Fidan's reference to Egypt potentially joining the pact. Egypt already participates with Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in the "R4" format, whose third ministerial meeting took place in Cairo on June 21, 2026. Should Cairo — Greece's key Eastern Mediterranean partner — be drawn into this new architecture, Greek regional strategy would suffer a serious blow. For now, Estia reported, Cairo keeps its distance: Egypt depends heavily on UAE investment and holds a bilateral defense deal with Abu Dhabi, and a diplomat told Arabic media that Egypt would not join a defense pact with Turkey given its relations with Greece and Cyprus — nor with Pakistan, while it pursues economic ties with India. Notably, Saudi Arabia itself reportedly opposed Egypt's inclusion "at least for now."
In a symbolic move ahead of Fidan's August 13–14 visit to Cairo, Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis spoke with his Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdelatty to review the Greece–Egypt strategic partnership, and two days later spoke with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Estia noted.
Israel and India are also on alert, the paper concluded. The Jerusalem Post views the Sunni bloc as a catalyst for new regional "counter-alignments," linking it to a Netanyahu–Modi call. Israeli Diaspora Minister Amichai Chikli called the alliance a highly dangerous development and urged deeper strategic ties with Greece, Cyprus, the UAE and Somaliland. India, alarmed by Pakistan's participation, denied as "fake news" reports that it is urgently seeking a parallel defense pact with Israel — while admitting it is monitoring events closely.