Pakistan appoints first secretary general of Makkah Joint Defence Agreement

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has appointed retired Lt Gen Nauman Mahmood as the first Secretary General pursuant to the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, with the former senior military commander set to lead the framework’s General Secretariat in Riyadh.

The Foreign Office said Wednesday that Mahmood would head the General Secretariat of the alliance being established in Saudi Arabia.

“The Government of Pakistan is pleased to announce the appointment of Lieutenant General Nauman Mahmood, Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Military), (Retired), as the first Secretary General pursuant to Makkah Joint Defence Agreement (MJDA),” the statement said.

His appointment comes after Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye agreed on Aug 31 to establish a Secretariat in Saudi Arabia, initially headed by a secretary general from Pakistan for a three-year term.

The appointment marks a significant institutional step for the agreement signed by the three countries in Makkah on Aug 7. The pact stipulates that an armed attack against any one of the three states shall be regarded as an attack against all, while also providing for enhanced defense cooperation among the three countries.

Who is Nauman Mahmood?

Photo courtesy: MoFA

Mahmood, who belongs to the Baloch Regiment, has held senior command, intelligence and military education positions during his career. He commanded an infantry division in North Waziristan before serving as director general of analysis at Inter-Services Intelligence, where his responsibilities included national security and foreign policy analysis.

After his promotion to lieutenant general in 2019, Mahmood was appointed inspector general of Communications and Information Technology at General Headquarters. He subsequently commanded XI Corps in Peshawar, overseeing security along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, before being appointed president of the National Defence University in 2021.

Mahmood later retired from the Pakistan Army. He now takes charge of the Makkah framework’s Secretariat as its first secretary general, giving Pakistan responsibility for the initial leadership of the institution established to coordinate work under the agreement.

Makkah pact

The appointment follows the inaugural meeting of the Strategic Political and Defense Committee established under MDJA, which brought together the foreign and defense ministers and military chiefs of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye in Istanbul on Aug 31.

At the meeting, the three countries agreed to further institutionalize their cooperation under the Makkah framework, with the Secretariat to support their work and strengthen solidarity, collective deterrence and defense and cooperative security.

The joint statement said the three countries would also strengthen their defense capabilities and the cohesion of their armed forces through robust defense-industry cooperation, joint technology development and production.

The Foreign Office has described the agreement as defensive in nature and aimed at regional peace and stability. It has said the arrangement is neither directed against any country nor does it formally constitute a new bloc.

Agreement name

The appointment also comes amid differing references to the framework’s name following the Istanbul meeting.

Turkish officials have publicly used the term “Makkah Defence Alliance,” but Pakistan’s Foreign Office said earlier this month that it was not aware of any formal change in the name and pointed journalists to the joint statement issued after the Istanbul meeting.

“The fact is that the Joint Statement is substantive. I think the focus ought to be on the substance of the Joint Statement rather than on any name,” Foreign Office Spokesperson Ambassador Sajjad Haider Khan said.

He added that the joint statement referred to it as the “Makkah Agreement for Joint Defence,” while explaining that variations could occur across the Arabic, Turkish and English/Urdu versions. “Eventually, if there is a formal change of name, it will be announced, you will be informed,” he said.

Two defense agreements

Mahmood’s appointment comes as Pakistan maintains two separate defense frameworks with Saudi Arabia, including the trilateral Makkah agreement and the Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement signed between Islamabad and Riyadh in September last year.

Pakistan’s military spokesperson Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry recently said Islamabad’s commitments to Saudi Arabia were covered by both arrangements.

“As for the commitments that Pakistan has made, it is part of not only the Makkah Defense Agreement, but also as part of the strategic mutual defense agreement between Pakistan and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” Chaudhry told Arab News.

The Makkah agreement builds on longstanding defense and security cooperation between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye. The Foreign Office has said it aims to enhance existing defense cooperation, including training and capacity building, exchange of best practices, and cooperation in defense technologies and research, alongside collective deterrence against acts aimed at destabilizing regional security.

The creation of the Secretariat and appointment of a Pakistani secretary general give Islamabad a central role in the day-to-day institutional development of the Makkah framework.

The three countries have said their cooperation is intended to contribute to regional peace and stability, while supporting de-escalation, restraint and peaceful resolution of crises.