Makkah Defence Alliance chief to take up Riyadh post, FO says

The Foreign Office said on Friday that Lieutenant General (retd) Nauman Mahmood, secretary general of the Makkah Defence Alliance, is expected to assume his responsibilities in Riyadh soon.

Mahmood was appointed the alliance's first secretary general on September 23. The alliance brings together Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye.

Foreign Office spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan announced the expected move at the ministry's weekly press briefing. Dawn reported that Khan said Mahmood would take up the Riyadh posting shortly, without giving a date for his departure or arrival.

At the same briefing, Khan said Pakistan would continue its efforts to facilitate dialogue in the conflict involving Iran and the United States. He said Islamabad had been working to keep channels open, according to the account of the briefing carried by Dawn, which did not set out which parties had been contacted or when.

The briefing remarks carried by Dawn did not give details of the alliance's structure, its secretariat in Riyadh, its funding or the size of the staff Mahmood will lead. The appointment on September 23 made him the first person to hold the post since the three countries set up the arrangement.

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye have separate defence ties with one another, and the alliance adds a standing joint command structure to those relationships. Mahmood's move to Riyadh places the alliance's headquarters staff in the Saudi capital, where the secretary general will work.

The Foreign Office holds a weekly briefing in Islamabad at which spokespersons answer questions on foreign policy, consular matters and Pakistan's positions on overseas conflicts. Friday's session covered both the alliance posting and the Iran-United States conflict.