ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani on Monday reaffirmed support for an independent Palestinian state, saying that it was in the South Asian country’s “national interest.”
Jilani’s comment came a day after Geo News reported he had said any decision to establish bilateral relations with Israel would hinge on the nation’s own interests and the well-being of the Palestinian people. His statement also follows Israeli Foreign Affairs Minister Eli Cohen’s remarks from last week in which Cohen indicated he had met leaders of several Islamic nations in recent days who were likely to forge diplomatic ties with Israel soon.
Pakistan does not recognize the state of Israel and has repeatedly called for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters” and the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.
“In my statement at UNGA, I renewed Pakistan’s call for an independent State of Palestine, based on pre-67 borders, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as capital,” Jilani wrote on social media platform X. The foreign minister was responding to a comment by a journalist who sought clarification on whether Pakistan was considering recognizing the state of Israel.
“This is in our national interest.”
On Sunday, Pakistan’s Caretaker Information Minister Murtaza Solangi said Islamabad has taken a “traditional and principled stand” on not recognizing Israel, adding that the state and its institutions stand by it.
“Pakistan’s position on Israel is related to the future of the people of Palestine,” Solangi told GTV News. “As long as Palestinians do not get their free country and their right to self-determination, which is recognized in the United Nations resolutions, Pakistan will not abandon its Palestinian brothers.”
Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar also advocated for a two-state solution as a path to enduring peace in Palestine during his United Nations General Assembly speech on Friday.
He reiterated Pakistan’s position on the matter, calling for the “establishment of a viable and contiguous Palestinian state within the pre-June 1967 borders with Al-Quds as its capital.”
Kakar also criticized Israeli military raids against Palestinians and its expansion of settlements in the Occupied Territories.
