New Delhi, Aug. 8 -- While a US-Iran deal continues to elude the world, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkiye signed one of their own this week-one that raises the stakes, particularly for India.

The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, signed on 7 August to strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggression, stipulates that an armed attack on any one of the three would be regarded as an attack on all, according to a joint statement.

The statement, however, was short on specifics, including the commitments each country has made and the extent to which the agreement would bind them to any particular military action in defence of the others.

For all intents and purposes, the pact is aimed at instilling confidence among West Asian coun...