The US President put Pakistan in a difficult position by urging it to join the Abraham Accords and formally recognize Israel, reportedly tying the move to any future peace agreement with Iran.
While the demand placed Pakistan in a diplomatic bind — risking straining ties with Trump or moving toward recognizing its long-time rival Israel — Islamabad appears to have rejected the idea.
Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has said that Islamabad should not give in to Trump's call to Muslim-majority nations to join the Abraham Accords. Talking to Samaa TV, Asif noted that the American leader's proposal conflicts with Pakistan's "fundamental ideologies".
"I don't think we should join any such accord that clashes with our fundamental ideologies. How will you sit down with those people whose word cannot be trusted even for a single day?" the defence minister said in an interview with Samaa TV, taking a swipe at Israel.
Asif also referred to Pakistan's passport policy to reject any suggestion of a change in its outlook towards Israel. "On our passports, we are the only country whose passports don't even include Israel’s name... We have a very clear stance that this is not acceptable to us," he said.
Beginning this week, Trump "mandatorily requested" several Muslim-majority and Arab nations to normalize ties with Israel and linked it to negotiations to end the Iran conflict.
'Pakistan as mediator more than problematic': US senatorRepublican Senator Lindsey Graham has raised concerns about Pakistan’s role as a mediator in the ongoing United States-Iran engagement, calling Islamabad’s position “more than problematic" and pressing the country to clarify its stance on joining the Abraham Accords. In a post on X, Graham directly questioned Pakistan’s neutrality, citing what he described as the country’s long-standing hostility towards Israel and remarks made by senior Pakistani officials. “It has been apparent to me for quite a while that Pakistan as a mediator is more than problematic. Their animosity towards Israel is long-standing," Graham wrote. He further alleged that “Iranian military aircraft are being housed on Pakistani air bases" and described “past rhetoric from the highest Pakistani officials against Israel" as “disturbing." |
