PM Shehbaz meets first secretary-general of Makkah defence pact, reaffirms support for Saudi Arabia

ISLAMABAD: PM Shehbaz met Lieutenant General (retd) Nauman Mahmood, the first secretary-general of the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement (MJDA), and conveyed his best wishes as he takes up the new role.

According to the statement by Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), PM Shehbaz described the MJDA as a historic milestone for promoting peace, unity and stability in the region. He reaffirmed Pakistan’s unwavering commitment to protecting Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and security, saying Pakistan stood shoulder to shoulder with the kingdom in safeguarding its defence and regional security. He also reiterated Pakistan’s full support for Saudi Arabia’s legitimate right to defend itself.

Mahmood briefed the prime minister on the strategy for defence cooperation under the pact.

Committee endorses appointment

Pakistan announced Mahmood’s appointment on September 23, after the three participating countries decided that a Pakistani would be nominated as the alliance’s first secretary-general. The alliance’s general secretariat is being established in Riyadh.

The Strategic Political and Defence Committee endorsed the nomination at an emergency meeting in Riyadh on October 5, held to review security developments and threats facing Saudi Arabia. According to a joint statement issued by the Foreign Office, the committee decided to move immediately towards implementing the alliance’s collective defence commitments and to take the necessary measures for rapid deployment of agreed forces and capabilities in the kingdom. Any deployment, it said, would be carried out in line with approved arrangements and the national laws of the three countries. The meeting also condemned attempts to target Makkah and Madinah and attacks on Saudi cities and civilian facilities.

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye signed the MJDA on August 7. It treats an armed attack on any one of the three as an attack on all.

In his new role, Mahmood is expected to help build the alliance’s institutional structure, coordinate among the participating countries and turn political commitments into practical defence and security arrangements.

Mahmood’s career

Mahmood belongs to the Baloch Regiment and was commissioned into the Pakistan Army in September 1987 after graduating from the Pakistan Military Academy. He holds a master’s degree in War Studies and is a graduate of the Command and Staff College in Quetta, the Command and Staff College in Cairo and the National Defence University in Islamabad. He spent a significant part of his career at the Quetta college, where he served in instructional roles before becoming chief instructor.

He commanded a para brigade in South Waziristan and an infantry brigade in Kashmir. As a major general, he led the 7 Infantry Division in North Waziristan and took part in Operation Zarb-e-Azb. He later served as director general of the Analysis Directorate at the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), where he assessed international developments from a national security perspective and engaged foreign intelligence agencies through the agency’s external liaison.

Promoted to lieutenant general in April 2019, he was appointed inspector general of the Communication and Information Technology Branch at General Headquarters in Rawalpindi. In December 2019, he took command of XI Corps in Peshawar, a tenure that coincided with the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and Pakistan’s efforts to secure its western border. He relinquished command in November 2021 and became the 35th president of the National Defence University, serving until he retired in April 2023. He is a recipient of the Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Military).

‘Not something that has come out in a vacuum’

Days after the Riyadh meeting, DG ISPR Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif said Pakistani forces had been deployed in Saudi Arabia in multiple capacities and domains for decades. Asked in an interview with CNN about Pakistani personnel already on the ground under the MJDA, he said: “Pakistani troops have been there for decades.”

He stressed that the alliance had not emerged in isolation. “This Makkah Alliance is not something that has come out in a vacuum,” he said, pointing to sustained diplomatic, political, military and people-to-people ties between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye.