Trump says he spoke with Saudi crown prince, may ask Turkey to join Yemen response
A Turkish role would mark the first direct American involvement in the Mecca Alliance, the Saudi-Pakistan-Turkey pact formed to counter Houthi attacks.
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The Mecca Alliance was signed by Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey on August 7, declaring that an attack on one member is an attack on all three. The pact was invoked for the first time on October 5, when the three countries agreed in Riyadh to activate what they called deterrence measures and rapidly deploy forces to Saudi Arabia. Pakistan's defence minister has said Pakistani and Turkish forces are to play a supporting role, mainly reconnaissance, while Saudi forces do the fighting against the Houthis. Pakistan already has roughly 8,000 troops stationed in Saudi Arabia, along with a squadron of JF-17 fighters, drones and an air defense system. Turkey's parliament has yet to ratify the pact, which under its constitution it must do before troops can be sent abroad.
Renewed Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia's main airport have added to concerns over a wider Middle East conflict. Gold is near $4,206.86 and Brent is down 1.2 per cent, moving on the airport strike and a separate ceasefire claim.
Trump had previously said he would hold off on direct Yemen involvement, in keeping with a pattern of ruling out direct strikes until after the November 3 election. Floating Turkish participation alongside Pakistan and Saudi Arabia would be Washington's first direct role in that coalition structure, a shift from merely signaling toward shaping the response itself. Saudi export flows have held up through months of claimed and intercepted strikes, so the change matters more for how the conflict's command structure evolves than for any immediate disruption to supply.