History in the making? Musharraf: Willing to visit Israel to promote peace

Pakistan's President Gen. Pervez Musharraf  has said he is willing to visit Israel to promote peace. This is not quite the historic breakthrough created by Anwar Sadat  in 1977. But it is a sign of thaw for sure:

 

Pakistan's President Gen. Pervez Musharraf made a surprise offer Friday to help resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in an interview with the pan-Arab satellite Television Al-Arabiya.

 

Musharraf told the Dubai-based television that he would be willing to visit Israel in order to help bring peace to the troubled Middle East.

 

Pakistan - a key ally in the U.S.-led war against terrorism - has no formal diplomatic ties with Israel and supports a separate state for Palestinians with Jerusalem as its capital.

 

In the interview aired late Friday, Musharraf said he was enthusiastic to solve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and would go to Israel if his offer to be involved in a mediation process was accepted.

 

Musharraf said he could also start his talks first with the Palestinians, "or maybe in some third country ... going to Israel is also a possibility."

 

"It will be an honor, if I can contribute in any way," said Musharraf, although he has so far not been asked to mediate. "If there was a role that I can play, and both sides accept that role, yes, indeed, I would like to play that role."

 

The Pakistani leader suggested that the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan will not be solved unless solutions for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict are found first, adding that these solutions would have an impact on the Mideast's stability, and will also bring serenity and stability throughout the region and beyond.

 

Pakistan has not been yet involved in any negotiations concerning the Arab region, but hosted talks in late February in Islamabad, attended by Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, on issues ranging from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, to the war in Iraq and the standoff with Iran.

 

In September 2005, Pakistani Foreign Minister Khursheed Mehmood Kasuri met with then Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom in Istanbul in the first publicly acknowledged high-level contact between the predominantly Muslim nation and Israel.

 

Musharraf had defended his government's talks with Israel, saying contact between the two countries is in accordance with the tenets of Islam. Musharraf said Islam allowed its followers to engage with people of other faiths.

 

"Islam is a religion of peace and it has lived in peace and harmony with other faiths for centuries and can do so in future as well," an official statement quoted him as saying while speaking to Kasuri.

 

Musharraf reiterated Pakistan would not recognize Israel until a Palestinian state was established.

 

Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, who was also present in the meeting, said Pakistan would decide about the recognition of Israel "in the supreme national interest after due consultations."

 

Pakistan had made the decision to hold talks with Israel after the implementation of the 2005 disengagement plan.