Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan forge attack on one, attack on all pact as Iran deal lingers

WASHINGTON — The much-hyped Iran-Oman deal that US officials predicted would reopen the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week never materialized — but another consequential agreement moved forward Friday as three of the Muslim world’s most powerful nations joined forces against a region on fire.Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey announced Friday they signed a landmark joint defense pact in Mecca, declaring that an attack on one would be treated as an attack on all — a move that could reshape the security landscape as Iran continues missile strikes and threatens vital energy routes across the Gulf.The agreement comes as Tehran and its allies have repeatedly targeted Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states during the US war on Iran, sending shockwaves through global energy markets and raising fears that Washington’s traditional security partners may seek new ways to protect themselves.The pact — signed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif — creates a new security framework linking a NATO power, the Arab world’s heavyweight and the only nuclear-armed Islamic nation.The timing was impossible to ignore.For weeks, the Trump administration has pushed to restore stability after Iran disrupted commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, the critical waterway through which a huge portion of the world’s oil supply flows.US officials had expected an Oman-brokered arrangement with Tehran to create a limited shipping corridor through the strait to help traffic kick up.But as those efforts stalled, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan moved ahead with their own answer to the growing threat.Under the “Mecca Joint Defence Agreement,” the three countries said they would strengthen collective deterrence against aggression and consider an armed attack on any member an attack on all three.Still, the agreement did not spell out specific military commitments or automatically require a mili...