Israel reaps diplomatic dividends of Gaza pullout
AFP
Date: 09-01-05
JERUSALEM (AFP) - Israel was reaping the diplomatic dividends within the Muslim world of its pullout from the Gaza Strip, forging unprecedented contacts with Pakistan and deepening ties with Egypt and Jordan.
Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom's talks in Turkey with his Pakistani counterpart, Khurshid Kasuri, the first public meeting at such a high level, prompted Palestinian expressions of "concern".
But Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said the Islamic republic would not formally recognize
the Jewish state until the creation of a Palestinian state.
Speaking from Istanbul, Shalom said "I have said to the representatives of numerous Arab and Islamic states that our withdrawal from Gaza would be the right time for the establishment of diplomatic relations.
"This meeting is extremely significant and we hope that it will be the prelude to relations at the same level we have with (Israel's close ally) India.
"We hope that there will soon be visits by delegations from my ministry to Pakistan which will be swiftly followed by the normalization of relations between our two countries."
To date Israel has full, if often strained diplomatic relations with only three Arab states -- Egypt, Jordan and Mauritania -- and a handful of Muslim majority states including Turkey.
Once one of three states to recognize the former fundamentalist Taliban regime in Afghanistan, Pakistan has since become a key ally of the US "war against terror" under Musharraf's leadership.
Kasuri linked the decision to open talks to the pullout of settlers from Gaza which was completed 10 days ago, the first time Israel has evacuated its citizens from parts of the occupied Palestinian territories.
"Pakistan gives great importance to the developments in Israel and the Gaza Strip," said Kasuri.
"Pakistan has therefore decided to engage with Israel," he added, without elaborating.
Musharraf said the move "should not be misconstrued" and reiterated Pakistan's long-held stance that diplomatic ties could only be considered once a Palestinian homeland is established.
"We will not recognize Israel unless the Palestinians get their homeland or there are signs of an accord in this direction," he told reporters in Pakistan.
Palestinian deputy premier Nabil Shaath said he was "worried" about the contacts. "It is not good to give Israel gifts before it really implements the peace process, not only in Gaza, but in Gaza, the West Bank and Jerusalem."
The complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza moved a step closer when Israeli and Egyptian officials signed a protocol in Cairo for the deployment of Egyptian border guards along the territory's southern border.
The deal, months in the making, will see 750 lightly armed officers fan out to stop weapons being smuggled from Egypt into Gaza when all Israeli soldiers are recalled later this month.
Although Jordan denied reports that King Abdullah II had scheduled a visit to Jerusalem next week, a source close to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon indicated a meeting was on the cards after lengthy planning.
"We must wait for an official announcement in good time," he told AFP.
Jordan's 1994 peace treaty with Israel remains extremely sensitive in the kingdom where a large proportion of the population is of Palestinian descent.
Abdullah hosted the launch of the internationally backed roadmap peace plan in June 2003 and was also present at a landmark summit between Sharon and Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas in Egypt in February.
The international community has been hoping Israel's departure from Gaza after a 38-year occupation would revive the peace process.
But right-wing critics of the pullout in Israel say that it will only serve to strengthen militant groups such as Hamas who have been portraying the withdrawal as an act of surrender.
In a rally in southern Gaza on Thursday evening, the Islamist movement's top leader in Gaza reiterated that Hamas would resist any attempt by the Palestinian Authority to disarm them and said that the totemic Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem would only be 'liberated' by force.
"Hamas suffered a lot and many people were killed. After the victory is achieved how can some people say ... you must disarm. This is not fair, this is why we will keep our weapons," Mahmud Zahar said.
"Al-Aqsa mosque will not be liberated by negotiations but in a final battle. Allah has promised his people this victory."
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