ISLAMABAD (Kashmir English): Pakistan has appointed Lieutenant General (retired) Nauman Mahmood as the first secretary-general of the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, the Foreign Office said on Wednesday.
In a statement, the Foreign Office spokesperson said that the newly appointed secretary-general will lead the General Secretariat of the Alliance, to be established in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The joint defence pact was signed by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkiye on August 7, stipulating that any armed attack against any one of the three States shall be regarded as an attack against them all.
In a press release issued after the signing of the pact, the Foreign Office spokesperson said the defence agreement reflects the “three States’ shared commitment to further strengthening their collective security” and to promoting peace, security, and stability in the region and beyond, in pursuit of a secure and prosperous future.
The inaugural meeting of the alliance was held on Aug 31 in Istanbul, Turkiye, where officials from all member states decided to establish the institutional structure of the alliance, and Pakistan was picked to head its secretariat in Riyadh.
The meeting further decided that a Secretariat, headed by a Secretary General, will be established in Saudi Arabia to support their work within the framework of the Makkah Agreement.
“The Secretariat will be initially headed by a Secretary General from the Islamic Republic of Pakistan for a period of three years,” the joint statement said.
Who is Nauman Mahmood?
He was commissioned into the Pakistan Army in September 1987 and retired in 2023.
Lt Gen (R) Nauman is a graduate of the Command and Staff College, Quetta, the Command and Staff College in Egypt and the National Defence University, Islamabad, and holds a master’s degree in War Studies.
A substantial part of his career was spent at the Command and Staff College, where he served in different instructional capacities before becoming chief instructor.
Mahmood previously served as president of Pakistan’s National Defence University in Islamabad from November 2021 until April 2023.
