NEW YORK, 16 September 2005 — The leaders of Pakistan and Israel met by chance at the UN summit Wednesday and they shook hands, a gesture that could cause controversy, especially in Pakistan.
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said he and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon happened to approach each other during the meetings of leaders at United Nations headquarters in New York.
“He shook hands with me, I did shake hands with him. He asked me how I was, I asked him how you are ... and that’s very good,” Musharraf told reporters.
During his trip to New York, Musharraf plans to address a Jewish audience as part of his policy of recognizing the Jewish state without diplomatically recognizing it. He acknowledged opposition among Muslims, particularly in Pakistan, to his overture.
“What is the harm if I interacted with the Jewish Congress, knowing their influence here?” the New York Times quoted Musharraf as saying.
The opposition MMA party took exception to the hand shake and launched nationwide protest rallies.
Israel and Pakistan do not have diplomatic relations but their foreign ministers met in Istanbul on Sept. 1 in the first official contact between the Jewish state and Islamic republic.
On Monday, Israel signed a decree authorizing unrestricted Pakistani imports on a temporary basis to boost economic and commercial relations.
