Jilani responds to Israeli FM\u2019s claims that up to 7 Muslim countries would make peace with Israel following Saudi deal
\nISLAMABAD
\nCaretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani maintained that Pakistan\u2019s decision regarding establishing relations with Israel would be determined with consideration of both Pakistan\u2019s national interests and those of the Palestinian people.
\nThe statement came in response to Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen\u2019s remarks regarding normalisation of Israel\u2019s relations with the Muslim world.
\nCohen, as reported by Israeli media outlet Kan News, suggested that \u201csix or seven\u201d Islamic nations were likely to normalise ties with Israel, following Saudi Arabia\u2019s potential inclusion in the Abraham Accords, which already involved the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan.
\nThe Israeli minister also claimed to have met with leaders from several Muslim countries who have not recognised Israel yet.
\nJalil, in response to the Israeli FM\u2019s assertion, clarified that Cohen has not met with any Pakistani official in recent times.
\nIn 2005, during the tenure of former president General Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan\u2019s then-foreign minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri met with his then-counterpart Silvan Shalom in Turkey, Istanbul.
\nThis was the first meeting that took place publicly and was a result of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan\u2019s efforts. However, no such meetings at the level of foreign ministers or higher have been reported in the media since then.
\nA senior Pakistani diplomat, on the condition of anonymity, hoped that Pakistan would not have to make a decision on this matter in the near future.
\nIn his address at the 78th United Nations General Assembly this week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said peace with Saudi Arabia means peace between the Muslim world and Jews.
\nNetanyahu also claimed Israel is \u201con the cusp\u201d of normalising ties with Saudi Arabia while holding maps showing the West Bank, Gaza, and Golan Heights as part of Israel.
\nHis statement has since sparked a new debate about which Muslim countries, after the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan, will establish relations with Israel.
\nIt should be noted that Cohen has claimed that six or seven Muslim countries, including Saudi Arabia, will soon recognise Israel. However, he did not mention the names of those seven countries due to the in Libya, international affairs experts believe.
\nA significant diplomatic issue with Libya was sparked less than a month ago by Cohen, whose office disclosed that then-former foreign minister of Libya, Najla Mangoush, had met with him in Rome.
\nMangoush was fired as a result of the discovery, which also caused widespread protests in North Africa, and fled to London. Following his error, US officials reprimanded Cohen for \u201ckilling\u201d the conduit of communication with Libya, The Cradle reported. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jilani responds to Israeli FM\u2019s claims that up to 7 Muslim countries would make peace with Israel following Saudi deal ISLAMABAD Caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani maintained that Pakistan\u2019s decision regarding establishing relations with Israel would be determined with consideration of both Pakistan\u2019s national interests and those of the Palestinian people. The statement came […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":358076,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-358056","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n