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Turkey is lobbying to join a defence pact between Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan, a potential move that could create a new military bloc in the Middle East amid rising tensions in the Gulf and Iran.

Bloomberg reported on Friday that the talks between Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are at an “advanced stage and a deal is very likely”, citing people familiar with the matter.

If Pakistan, Turkey and Saudi Arabia sign a trilateral defence pact, it would link three of the region’s largest countries, each with unique advantages.

• Oil-rich Saudi Arabia is the Arab world’s only G-20 economy and home to Mecca and Medina, the two holiest cities in Islam.
• Pakistan is the Muslim-world’s only nuclear-armed state.
• Turkey, which straddles Asia and Europe, boosts Nato’s second-largest army.