Turkey and Qatar sign mutual defence agreement in Istanbul

by · Greek City Times

Turkey and Qatar signed a mutual defence agreement on Friday in Istanbul, with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani putting their names to the pact at the Presidential Dolmabahçe Office.

A joint communiqué issued after the 12th session of the Qatar–Türkiye Supreme Strategic Committee said the agreement was intended to strengthen collective defence and regional security. The two sides pledged “a unified stance in confronting any external armed attack targeting either party or both of them,” and said they would consult on security threats and expand cooperation through joint military exercises, defence-industry work and personnel training. The full text of the treaty has not been published, and neither government has spelled out what military assistance would follow an attack.

Erdoğan said the pact would add “another dimension” to ties between the two countries, and that Ankara and Doha would keep working “to prevent the resurgence of war in the Gulf region.” The deal builds on a defence relationship dating back to a 2014 cooperation agreement and Turkey’s existing military presence in Qatar. It is separate from the broader Mecca defence pact Turkey signed with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan earlier this year.

In the same communiqué, Turkey and Qatar also criticised Israeli actions in Gaza and called on Israel to comply with the ceasefire. Israeli news outlets reported the signing, but no Israeli official or military source has been quoted reacting to the pact, and claims that it amounts to preparation for a confrontation with Israel have not been independently verified.

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