Turkey offers to assist Saudi Arabia amid Houthi attacks

Turkey has told Saudi Arabia it stands ready to provide assistance as Riyadh faces ongoing attacks from Yemen's Houthi movement, the Turkish foreign minister said. Hakan Fidan framed the offer as possible military and technical support under a recently negotiated trilateral defence pact that also involves Pakistan.

"We see that very serious attacks are being carried out against the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Saudi Arabia. We have an alliance agreement within our pact and we show strong solidarity in this regard. They may have certain military needs, especially regarding some technical issues. For us it would not be a problem to meet those needs," Fidan said.

Details of the Mecca agreement

The joint defence agreement from Mecca, signed last month, establishes that an armed attack on any of the three signatories will be considered an attack on all. Fidan invoked that clause when describing why Ankara could respond to Riyadh's requests.

Fidan said Ankara has observed "very serious" assaults on Saudi territory and sovereignty, and that some of Riyadh's requirements may be technical rather than large-scale troop contributions. He suggested Turkey could supply such support without difficulty if requested.

The trilateral pact, which brings together Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, has been presented by its members as a mechanism for deeper military cooperation and mutual defence. Ankara's latest statements underline a willingness to translate that language into concrete assistance amid the current Houthi campaign.

Photo: AP)