Jaishankar plays down Pak-Turkey-Saudi defence pact amid live conflicts

India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar downplayed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye, asking what it has achieved amid the ‘live military situations’ each signatory faces. He said India would still factor the pact into its security calculus, noting that actions by countries not well disposed toward India matter. The MEA stressed it is assessing the pact’s implications for national security and regional peace, while Jaishankar highlighted Pakistan’s use of terrorism as unique and urged careful, context-aware engagement with major powers including China.