Published: · Region: Middle East · Category: geopolitics

New Saudi–Turkey–Pakistan Defense Bloc Puts Regional Military Balance Under Fresh Pressure

Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan are aligning in a new defense partnership that pools hundreds of thousands of troops, more than 2,000 combat aircraft and sizeable defense budgets. The emerging bloc could reshape calculations from the Gulf to the Mediterranean and South Asia, forcing rivals and partners alike to rethink how they plan around three of the Muslim world’s most capable militaries.

Three of the Muslim world’s most powerful militaries are moving closer together in a new defense alignment that could alter strategic calculations from Tehran to New Delhi. Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan are formalizing a partnership that brings together large standing armies, advanced air forces and deepening defense budgets, signaling an ambition to act collectively rather than as three separate poles. Data released by regional media detail the basic contours of the grouping’s military weight. Turkey, with a population of about 84.1 million, fields some 481,000 active personnel, 1,101 military aircraft, 2,284 tanks and 192 naval vessels, backed by a defense budget of roughly $51.4 billion. Saudi Arabia, with 36.5…

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