Pakistan, Qatar, Türkiye and Indonesia Sign 'Badr' Defence Agreement

Pakistan, Qatar, Türkiye and Indonesia signed a multilateral agreement on Wednesday to increase cooperation in defence production and capabilities. The memorandum, named 'Badr', adds a new dimension to defence cooperation among the four countries.

The information was reported by Dawn online, citing Türkiye's defence ministry. Pakistan's foreign ministry has not yet commented on the signing, according to the report.

According to the Turkish ministry, ministers from the four countries attended a ceremony held in Qatar and signed the agreement there. Defence Minister Khawaja Asif signed on behalf of Pakistan.

The other signatories included Türkiye's Defence Minister Yaşar Güler, Qatar's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defence Affairs Sheikh Saud bin Abdul Rahman, and Indonesia's Deputy Defence Minister Yusuf Jauhari.

Haluk Görgün, head of Türkiye's defence industry secretariat, was also present at the ceremony. Photographs shared by the ministry showed the ministers at the signing.

According to a Reuters report, Türkiye's ministry said the agreement, titled the 'Badr Memorandum of Understanding', aims to increase cooperation in the defence field and strengthen self-defence capabilities.

Under the agreement, support will be provided for military exercises and training, research and development cooperation, and joint efforts to develop the defence industries, the ministry said.

Türkiye's Anadolu Agency, citing the ministry, said the memorandum would help build solutions and an industrial base in line with advances in modern defence systems.

Earlier, Pakistan, Türkiye and Saudi Arabia had formed a trilateral defence alliance called the 'Makkah defence alliance'. Under its terms, an attack on one member would be considered an attack on all.

With Indonesia and Qatar joining the 'Badr' arrangement, the scope of this cooperation has widened further. The defence closeness of the four Muslim-majority countries is expected to draw fresh attention in regional security discussions.

It remains to be seen how quickly the declared areas of the memorandum — exercises, training, research and the defence industry — turn into joint programmes in practice. A formal reaction from Pakistan's foreign ministry is also still awaited.