Syria Weighs Joining Saudi Mecca Defense Pact

Syria's foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani, told the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain on Saturday that Damascus is considering joining the Mecca alliance, a security partnership of Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan created in August. Breitbart reports Houthi insurgents have been hitting Saudi oil refineries and airports for months. Talks still underway make a lousy cliffhanger, more a first chapter with no ending. Turkey's parliament hasn't ratified the deal, so the only thing this pact shares with a Washington spending bill is that nobody has voted on it yet. Early October reports said Saudi Arabia wanted Syrian ground forces in Yemen. Damascus denied it, which is a plot twist with no second act. Deterrence needs more than a draft, and this pact is still one.

“Discussions are currently underway to evaluate Syria’s entry into the Mecca alliance”Asaad al-Shaibani, via ZeroHedge