Pakistan has rejected a reported proposal linked to former US President Donald Trump urging countries to join the Abraham Accords as part of a broader diplomatic framework tied to Iran peace negotiations.
Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said joining the Abraham Accords would conflict with Islamabad’s “fundamental ideologies” and reaffirmed that Pakistan’s position on recognising Israel remains unchanged. Speaking to Pakistani news channel Samaa TV, Asif questioned the possibility of diplomatic engagement with Israel.
“Personally, I don’t think we should join any such accord that clashes with our fundamental ideologies,” he said during the interview.
Also Read | Trump honors fallen troops at Arlington during Memorial Day ceremony
Pakistan says recognition of Israel ‘not acceptable’
During the interview, Asif was asked whether Pakistan was facing pressure from Trump to formally join the Abraham Accords.
“We have a very clear stance that this is not acceptable to us,” the minister replied. He also pointed out that Pakistan remains one of the few countries whose passports do not include Israel as a recognised destination.
The defence minister further criticised the possibility of engagement with Israel, saying, “How could Pakistan sit down with those people whose word cannot be trusted even for a single day?”
A clip of the interview has since circulated widely on social media, although the authenticity of the viral footage could not be independently verified by News Ei Samay,
What are the Abraham Accords?
The Abraham Accords were first introduced during Trump’s presidency in 2020 to normalise diplomatic, economic and security ties between Israel and several Arab nations.
The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain became the first countries to sign the agreements, followed later by Morocco and Sudan.
Trump recently urged countries including Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and Jordan to join the accords and formally recognise Israel as part of wider diplomatic efforts linked to the Iran conflict.
Donald Trump ANI In a Truth Social post, Trump argued that wider participation in the accords could help bring “true Power, Strength, and Peace to the Middle East.”
Pakistan reiterates Palestine stance
Pakistan has consistently maintained that it will not recognise Israel until an independent Palestinian state is established under a two-state solution framework.
The position dates back to the country’s founding years and traces its roots to Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s opposition to the UN partition plan for Palestine in 1947–48. Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar had earlier also rejected speculation around joining the Abraham Accords.
Also Read | As war demand rises, China’s tungsten dominance sends US searching worldwide
“We are not ready to recognise Israel until the two-state solution to the Palestine conflict is accepted,” he had said, adding that Pakistan’s decades-old policy remained unchanged.
Earlier this year, Pakistan’s Foreign Office also clarified that Islamabad’s participation in international peace initiatives linked to Gaza should not be interpreted as support for the Abraham Accords.
