ISTANBUL: Turkiye and Qatar signed a mutual defense agreement on Friday, the ​office of President Tayyip Erdogan said, as the Turkish leader met the Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani in Istanbul.

“President Erdogan stated that we would continue working together to prevent the resurgence of war in the ‌Gulf region ‌and establish a basis ​for ‌dialogue ⁠and achieve ​peace,” ⁠the presidency said in a statement on X, which did not provide details on the defense accord.

The statement cited him as saying that Turkiye and Qatar were working to develop and diversify their ⁠energy partnership, and that their cooperation ‌in the ‌defense industry would continue to grow.

“President ​Erdogan stated that ‌the Mutual Defense Agreement signed today ‌by Turkiye and Qatar would add another dimension to our brotherhood,” it added.

In August, Turkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed a joint defense ‌agreement in Makkah, bringing together the Sunni Muslim US allies at ⁠a ⁠time of conflict across the region.

Turkiye’s parliament ratified the so-called Makkah Joint Defense Agreement last week, clearing the way for Ankara to send military support to Saudi Arabia, which has been struggling to fend off attacks by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants.

Under the agreement, signed by the three regional powers ​in August, an attack ​on one party constitutes an attack on all.