Israeli minister says Pakistan not among states it may have ties with

Published December 24, 2020
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) pictured in this November file photo. — AP/File
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) pictured in this November file photo. — AP/File

JERUSALEM: Israel is working towards formalising relations with a fifth Muslim country, possibly in Asia, during US President Donald Trump’s term, an Israeli cabinet minister said on Wednesday.

The White House has brokered rapprochements bet­ween Israel and the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco this year. Rabat hosted an Israeli-US delegation on Tuesday to flesh out the upgrade in relations.

Asked if a fifth country could sign up before Trump steps down on Jan 20, Regional Cooperation Minister Ofir Akunis told Israel’s Ynet TV: “We are working in that direction.”

“I believe ... there will be an American announcement about another country that is going public with the normalisation of relations with Israel and, in essence, with the infrastructure for an accord — a peace accord,” he said.

Officials have said they are trying to get more countries to recognise Israel or warm existing ties to it.

Akunis said there were two main candidate countries to become the next to move towards normal ties with Israel. He did not name either but said one is in the Gulf and could be Oman but would not be Saudi Arabia. The other, further to the east, is a “Muslim country that is not small” but is not Pakistan, he said.

Indonesia, the most populous Muslim country, said last week it would not recognise Israel as long as Palestinian statehood demands remain unmet. Malaysia has signalled a similar policy.

“Malaysia’s firm stance on the Palestinian issue will not change,” Deputy Foreign Minister Kamarudin Jaffar told the country’s senate on Wednesday, adding that Kuala Lumpur would not interfere in other nations’ decisions on Israel.

In Dhaka, a foreign ministry official said Bangladesh was not interested in establishing diplomatic ties with Israel. “Our position remains the same,” he told Reuters.

Oman has praised the US-brokered diplomatic drive but has not commented on its own prospects of forging Israel ties.

The Palestinians, whose negotiations with Israel stalled in 2014, fear being sidelined by the normalisation process.

Published in Dawn, December 24th, 2020

Opinion

Editorial

Left behind
Updated 14 Jan, 2025

Left behind

Pakistan’s education statistics threaten to leave us behind in the global knowledge economy.
Mining tragedies
14 Jan, 2025

Mining tragedies

TWO recent deadly mining tragedies in Balochistan have once again exposed the hazardous nature of work in this...
Winter sports
14 Jan, 2025

Winter sports

FOR a country with huge winter sports potential, events in Pakistan are few and far between. Therefore, the start of...
Anything goes
Updated 13 Jan, 2025

Anything goes

With social media companies abandoning moderation efforts, dark days of freewheeling internet have seemingly returned.
Odious trade
13 Jan, 2025

Odious trade

WHEN home feels like a sinking ship, people are forced to make ill-fated journeys for a better life. Last month,...
Treasure of the Indus
13 Jan, 2025

Treasure of the Indus

THE Indus dolphin, or bulhan as it is known locally, is a remarkable species found only in the Indus River. Unlike...