MIDEAST: Pakistan Takes a Step Closer to Israel

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Peter Hirschberg

JERUSALEM, Jul 15 2003 (IPS) - When Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf declared last month that the time had come for his country to consider diplomatic relations with Israel, it caused only a minor stir among the Israeli public and in the media. The focus then was on the Palestinians and whether they would halt the Intifadah uprising.

Some officials dismissed the comment, made on the eve of Musharraf’s trip to the United States, as an attempt by the Pakistan leader to smooth his meeting with President George W. Bush. "The Pakistanis attribute a lot of power to the American Jewish lobby, often greater than it is in reality," says one Israeli observer.

But then Musharraf came home and repeated his call, with even greater gusto. "I have said again and again: do we have to be more Catholic than the Pope or more Palestinian than the Palestinians themselves?" he said in an interview with the private Geo Television in Pakistan. "Is that the correct attitude? Or should we make a change? We must reach a national consensus on the subject, rather than leaving it to the emotionalism of the extremists."

Now some in Israel are pointing to the very public nature of Musharraf’s remarks – and the fact he reiterated them – as a sign of change. There has already been a quiet, hesitant, dialogue between Israeli and Pakistani diplomats since the 1980s. Military officials from the two sides have met at advanced study centres around the world.

"What is new is the fact that Musharraf made these comments publicly," Prof Yaacov Vertzberger, an expert in international relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem told IPS.

At the Israeli Foreign Ministry the tone is understated. "We have no diplomatic or border problems with Pakistan," the ministry’s deputy director-general Zvi Gabay told IPS. "We have no reason for any hostility. We would be happy to have relations with Pakistan."

Vertzberger says Musharraf’s willingness to go public on the controversial issue of ties with Israel as a sign that a strategic decision has been made by the Pakistan leadership. "Musharraf must have the backing of the senior military echelon on this," he says. "He wouldn’t have made the remarks otherwise. Now it’s a matter of time and timing (until relations are established)."

Relations with Pakistan are important for Israel. Pakistan is one of the most populous Muslim countries, and establishing ties could soften enmity towards the Jewish state in other Muslim countries. Israeli officials also believe that relations with Pakistan could spark a chain reaction in the region with countries like Indonesia, Malaysia and Bangladesh following suit.

In the past, Israel’s interest – or fear – has often focused on the fact that Pakistan is the only Muslim country with a nuclear capability. Israeli leaders were concerned that weapons or technology might find their way into Arab countries. Israel watched with consternation when Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi helped fund Pakistan’s nuclear programme in the 1970s.

A key factor propelling the present leadership in Pakistan is the growing strategic relationship between the Jewish state and India.

Israel has become a major arms supplier to India. In late May, it was reported that the United States had lifted its objection to Israel selling its Phalcon airborne radar system to India in a billion dollar deal. The radar, which is mounted on a cargo plane, will significantly extend the range of the Indian air force.

India is also said to have expressed interest in the Arrow, a defence system developed by Israel against ballistic missiles.

"Israel does not view its relationship with India as a step against Pakistan, and proceeds very cautiously in this sphere," Ze’ev Schiff, defence editor of the daily Haaretz newspaper said in a recent comment.

But Israel is aware that Pakistan is concerned over its strategic ties with India. "What worries leaders in Pakistan is that India’s relationship with Israel has given it a type of strategic edge," says Vertzberger. "There have even been press reports (in Pakistan) that Israel is going to help India undermine Pakistan’s nuclear capability. These are baseless."

Some in Israel suggest Musharraf’s comments might have been meant to gauge the reaction of the Muslim opposition in his country to such a move. Vertzberger believes the Pakistan leader could not have raised the issue last year "after the success of the fundamentalist parties in elections."

But with progress now on a new diplomatic initiative aimed at settling the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which has always been at the heart of Pakistan’s refusal to normalise ties with Israel, it is easier for Musharraf to publicly broach the issue.

It was in this context that he asked why his country needed to be "more Palestinian than the Palestinians themselves." The message was clear: if the Palestinian leadership was talking to Israel, so can Pakistan.

Vertzberger believes that full Israel-Pakistan relations are a matter of time. But he believes that the way Israel conducts itself will have an impact on whether they come about sooner or later. "If Israel hugs Musharraf too tightly that will not be good," he says. "But not to react at all to his statements is also not a good thing. There should be a reaction, but not one that draws too much attention."