Pakistan appoints first secretary-general of Makkah Joint Defense Agreement

2026-09-23

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan on Wednesday appointed retired Lt. Gen. Nauman Mahmood as the first secretary-general under the Makkah Joint Defense Agreement, the trilateral defense pact between Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan. Mahmood will lead the alliance’s General Secretariat, which is being established in Riyadh, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement. “The government of Pakistan is pleased to announce the appointment of Lt. Gen. Nauman Mahmood, Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Military), (Retired), as the first Secretary General pursuant to Makkah Joint Defence Agreement,” the ministry said. Mahmood previously served as president of Pakistan’s National Defence University in Islamabad from November 2021 until April 2023. He was commissioned into the Pakistan Army in 1987 and retired in 2023. Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed the Makkah Joint Defense Agreement on Aug. 7. The agreement establishes a framework for strengthening defense cooperation and collective deterrence among the three countries, with an armed attack against any one of the signatories considered an attack against all three. The appointment marks another step toward operationalizing the agreement following the establishment of its institutional framework and Riyadh-based General Secretariat.