According to multiple individuals, despite Pakistan’s persistent denial of normalizing ties with the Jewish State, it is facing mounting pressure from the Arab World to change its course; Dahri: Now is the time, because Arab countries want Pakistan to openly establish ties with Israel.
Pakistan is now being speculated to be one of the next countries that will normalize its diplomatic ties with the Jewish State. This comes after an alleged visit from a Pakistani official to Tel Aviv in recent days. Following the rumored meeting, multiple individuals began voicing their reasoning as for how or why Pakistan would even be willing to normalize ties with Israel after so much opposition.
Former Pakistani foreign minister and member of the Pakistan Muslim League Party, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, stated his reasoning as to why an agreement between the two countries makes sense, especially for Pakistan, when he said, “The current diplomatic isolation and the difficult economic situation of Pakistan have forced us to knock on the doors of an apartheid state. Our desperate situation is forcing us to abandon our Palestinian brethren and beg Israel to help us improve relations with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia.”
According to another individual, Noor Dahri, founder and executive director of Islamic Theology of Counter-Terrorism, “Pakistan is facing pressure from Arab countries to leave the Turkish bloc and normalize ties with Israel,” he said in an interview with i24 News. And in an interview with The Jerusalem Post, he explained that while Pakistani officials publicly deny the possibility of normalized ties with Israel unless there is an established State of Palestine, it’s hard to believe they could be so sure when Israel is now the door to better relations with Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
In essence, the Abraham Accords have fundamentally changed the relational climate of the Middle East. And in order for Pakistan to improve its relationship with the Arab World, it will need to better its relationship with Israel – and that’s what the Arab World wants, as he explained, “Both Arab countries have asked Pakistan to stop its alliance with Turkey and normalize relations with Israel. In return, Saudi Arabia will reinstate financial assistance and start providing the oil to Pakistan.”
Pakistan also shares a border with Iran, which would make a peace deal with Israel and the Arab World all the more significant. It is also worth noting that Pakistan is the only Muslim country that obtains a nuclear weapon.
