Qatar, Türkiye, Indonesia, Pakistan sign defence pact in Doha

Al Jazeera English posted a TikTok on October 21 under the caption “Qatar, Turkiye, Indonesia and Pakistan sign a defence pact in Doha to build a production hub, boost tech transfer and strengthen defences against missiles, drones and cyberattacks amid regional security threats.” The channel’s description says correspondents Osama Bin Javaid and Abdulla al-Etaibi discuss the deal.

The four countries signed that same Wednesday in Doha. Qatar’s news agency reported the memorandum of understanding, titled Badr, was inked by Qatar’s Ministry of Defense, Indonesia’s Ministry of Defense, Pakistan’s Ministry of Defense, Türkiye’s Ministry of Defense, Pakistan’s Defense Industrial Production Organization and Türkiye’s Presidency of Defense Industries. Attending were Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman bin Hassan Al-Thani, Pakistan’s Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Türkiye’s Yasar Guler, Pakistan’s Muhammad Raza Hayat Harraj, Indonesia’s Yusuf Jauhari and Haluk Gorgun of the Turkish defence-industry agency. QNA said Badr means full moon, a nod to how the four nations complement one another. The Hindu, citing PTI, noted the name also evokes the early Islamic Battle of Badr.

Ministers and industrial chiefs put their names on a production hub the same day a separate mutual-defence treaty went to a national parliament.

The Qatari Defence Ministry, quoted by Al Jazeera and QNA, said the MoU aims to foster defence manufacturing cooperation, strengthen capabilities, and expand technical training plus research and development. Other friendly nations may join under criteria the four agree. Al Jazeera reported the pact builds on work already under way. Qatar and Türkiye signed a bilateral defence-industry MoU in October 2025. Pakistan and Türkiye are building four naval ships, two in Istanbul and two at Karachi Shipyard. Indonesia and Türkiye are jointly building a tank.

Defence analyst Arda Mevlutoglu told Al Jazeera that Türkiye supplies technological expertise, systems integration and a mature industry; Pakistan and Indonesia bring manufacturing capacity, skilled workforces and sizeable domestic markets; Qatar offers investment potential and demand. Together they could establish integrated supply chains to jointly develop, manufacture and sustain defence systems, he said. Burcu Ozcelik of the Royal United Services Institute told the same outlet the rationale is to streamline existing export and joint-production deals “under a more structured and resilient networked hub, rather than reinvent the wheel with each new defence agreement.” Albert Vidal of the International Institute for Strategic Studies told Al Jazeera that Pakistan and Indonesia are willing to buy Turkish weapons and locate part of production at home, cutting costs for Turkish firms and creating jobs while Qatar adds financial depth.