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Pakistan, Turkiye, Qatar and Indonesia sign 'Badr' defence industry pact in Doha
The four countries will work together on joint arms production, research and technology transfer, Pakistan's defence minister said, two months after Islamabad joined a mutual defence treaty with Ankara and Riyadh.
Key points
- Pakistan, Turkiye, Qatar and Indonesia signed the Badr Memorandum of Understanding in Doha on Wednesday.
- It covers joint production, research and technology transfer in defence.
- Turkiye's defence ministry said the deal has substantial economic importance.
Pakistan, Turkiye, Qatar and Indonesia have signed a defence cooperation agreement in Doha that commits them to build weapons together and share technology, adding another layer to Pakistan’s growing web of military ties in the Muslim world.
The deal, called the Badr Memorandum of Understanding, was signed on Wednesday and announced by Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif. He described the other three as “trusted partners” and said the agreement was about “strengthening self-reliance, industrial collaboration, joint production and technology transfer”. Pakistan said all activities under it would follow international and domestic law.
The memorandum covers research and development, training exchanges and closer links between the four countries’ defence industries. Turkiye’s defence ministry said: “The agreement holds substantial economic importance.” Haluk Gorgun, who heads Turkiye’s Defence Industry Presidency, said: “Technology sharing, joint development and strengthening domestic production capabilities lie at the heart” of a sustainable defence industry, and that the four countries’ complementary strengths should now become concrete projects.
The pact does not, as far as has been made public, include a promise to defend one another. That commitment exists elsewhere: in August, Pakistan signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement with Turkiye and Saudi Arabia, under which an attack on one is treated as an attack on all. Turkiye’s parliament is now considering that treaty.
Turkiye has been helping Gulf states strengthen their defences during the Iran war, including Qatar, where it has a military base, and has close defence-industry ties with Indonesia. For India, which watches Pakistan’s arms partnerships closely, the new grouping is one more sign of Islamabad tying its defence industry to Turkiye and the Gulf.