Pakistan: No for Normalization with ‘Israel’

By Staff, Agencies 

Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has asserted opposition to his country's normalizing relations with the “Israeli” entity after US President Donald Trump called on regional states to enter rapprochement deals with "Tel Aviv".

Speaking to Pakistani broadcaster Samaa TV on Monday, Asif said Pakistan should not support agreements that conflict with the country’s "fundamental ideologies."

Asif made the remarks after being asked about the possibility of Pakistan's joining the so-called Abraham Accords – a set of Washington-facilitated détentes that have normalized relations between some regional countries and “Tel Aviv” – following reported pressure from Trump.

Questioning engagement with the “Israeli” entity, the Pakistani defense minister added, "How will you sit down with those people whose word cannot be trusted even for a single day?"

He also reiterated Islamabad’s longstanding position regarding the entity. "We have a very clear stance that this is not acceptable to us," Asif said.

Referring to Pakistan’s passport policy, he added, "And secondly, on our passports, we are the only country whose passports don't even include 'Israel's' name."

The remarks came as Trump called for more countries to follow the example of such states as the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain that have entered rapprochement deals with “Tel Aviv”.

He suggested that those countries join the "Abraham Accords" before conclusion of any agreement between Iran and the United States aimed at ending the cycle that has arisen out of Washington's unprovoked aggression against the Islamic Republic.

Trump said expansion of the accords "should start with the immediate signing by Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and everybody else should follow suit."

He also said that during discussions with leaders of Muslim and Arab countries, he stressed that "all of these Countries, at a minimum, simultaneously, [should] sign onto the Abraham Accords."

He said "it should be mandatory" for those states to join the normalization deals "after all the work done by the United States to try and pull this very complex puzzle together."

The US president did not clarify further, but observers commenting on his remarks said he was either trying to condition any agreement with Iran on realization of such détentes or portray a favorable picture of regional normalization with the occupying regime and Washington's role in it.