US Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) criticized Pakistan on Tuesday, after its Defense Minister rejected normalization with Israel, claiming that doing so would clash with Pakistan’s “fundamental ideologies."
In a post on social media, Graham said that Pakistan’s role as mediator in US-Iran talks is problematic given Pakistan’s ties to Iran and the anti-Israel rhetoric of its leaders.
“It has been apparent to me for quite a while that Pakistan as a mediator is more than problematic. Their animosity towards Israel is long standing," wrote Graham.
He added, “It is undeniable that Iranian military aircraft are being housed on Pakistani air bases and past rhetoric from the highest Pakistani officials against Israel is disturbing."
Graham also wrote that “it is imperative that Pakistan give an answer now to President Trump’s call to join the Abraham Accords."
The post came a day after Trump published a message on Truth Social in which he revealed that as part of the negotiations with Iran, he was discussing membership in the Abraham Accords with a number of countries, calling those countries to immediately join the accords which he brokered during his first term in office.
The countries with which the American president held discussions are Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, and Bahrain.
Pakistan’s Defense Minister had previously lashed out at Israel, calling it “evil and a curse for humanity" and accusing it of committing genocide in Lebanon.
Pakistan officially backs a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian Arab conflict and has a longstanding position of non-recognition of Israel until an independent Palestinian state is established.
At the same time, the two nations have a number of common strategic interests and rumors of a diplomatic breakthrough between the two have been swirling for several years.
In 2022, it was reported that an unofficial delegation of Pakistani nationals had visited Israel.