Why Pakistan will likely refuse to join the Abraham Accords

Why Pakistan will likely refuse to join the Abraham Accords Submitted by Zia Ur Rehman on Fri, 05/29/2026 - 18:31 Despite Trump's pressure, costs of normalising ties with Israel are higher in Pakistan than in Arab states due to its more vibrant and contested political landscape US Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets with Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar in the Treaty Room of the State Department in Washington, DC, on 29 May 2026 (Mandel Ngan/AFP) Off For decades, Pakistani passports have carried a simple but striking inscription: “Valid for all countries of the world except Israel ." This position is more than a diplomatic formality. It reflects one of Pakistan’s longest-standing foreign policy principles: Pakistan does not recognise Israel. Rooted in Pakistan's founding in 1947, this policy is reinforced by deep religious sentiment, a sensitive media ecosystem, successive governments' reluctance to challenge either, and a national consensus that views the Israeli- Palestinian conflict as a historical injustice. Now, this long-standing consensus is facing an unprecedented external test.  US President Donald Trump has linked a proposed peace deal to end the war with Iran to a dramatic, “mandatory” expansion of the Abraham Accords. The accords were a series of bilateral normalisation agreements between Israel and several Muslim-majority nations, including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, originally brokered by the US during the first Trump administration in 2020. Morocco and Sudan later joined the framework.  In a lengthy post on Truth Social , following discussions with regional leaders, including Pakistan's army chief, Field Marshal Asim M...

Original source: Middle East Eye