Why Trump's Abraham Accord demand puts Pakistan in an 'awkward' spot

US President Donald Trump has pushed most Muslim and Arab countries to join the Abraham Accords — a demand which places Pakistan, a key mediator in the Iran-US talks, in a tough spot, an expert said.

Michael Kugelman, a senior fellow for South Asia at the Atlantic Council and writer of Foreign Policy magazine’s weekly South Asia Brief, said on Monday (May 25), “...for now, joining the Abraham Accords is a nonstarter for Pak[istan].”

In a lengthy post on Truth Social on Monday, Trump called on countries including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkiye, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain to sign onto the Abraham Accords as part of a broader regional settlement tied to the potential deal with war-hit Iran.

"...after all the work done by the United States to try and pull this very complex puzzle together, it should be mandatory that all of these Countries, at a minimum, simultaneously, sign onto the Abraham Accords," Trump said.

"Those Countries discussed are Saudi Arabia, The United Arab Emirates (already a Member!), Qatar, Pakistan, Türkiye, Egypt, Jordan, and Bahrain (already a Member!). It may be possible that one or two have a reason for not doing so, and that will be accepted, but most should be ready, willing, and able to make this Settlement with Iran a far more Historic Event than it would, otherwise, be," Trump said on Monday.

Kugelman made the remarks while responding to a post about Trump telling "leaders of Arab and Muslim countries...that if a deal to end the Iran war is achieved, he wants their nations to join the Abraham Accords and sign peace agreements with Israel."

Kugelman wrote on X, “As I’ve said previously re Pakistan, the more you work with Trump, the greater the risk you’ll be asked to do something you don’t want to do – like join the Abraham Accords.”

The core intent of the Abraham Accords was to normalise relations between Israel and several Arab countries.

It focused on fostering bilateral diplomatic, trade, and security relations with Arab states that are not directly parties to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The problem was that the resulting agreements did not significantly address the Palestinian issue, the resolution of which had been considered a prerequisite to formal relations with Israel, according to the Middle East Institute.

This prompted criticism that the accords undermined the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, which sought to advance a two-state solution.

Now, Pakistan says that the Abraham Accords "clashes with our fundamental principles."

Islamabad has maintained that it will not recognise Israel until a just and independent Palestinian state is established based on internationally agreed principles.

This leads to an understanding that Pakistan's stance on the Abraham Accords and the Palestine issue, and, at the same time, the country's evolving relations with Trump, especially after Operation Sindoor, seem to have put it in a tough spot.

Trump's demand to join the Abraham Accords thus puts pressure on Pakistan, which has solidified its ground on the international stage by taking the role of key mediator in the Iran-US peace talks.

If Pakistan gives in to Trump's pressure, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Asim Munir may pay a high cost at home.

“Perhaps, if the Saudis were to join the AAs, Pakistan would feel pressure to reconsider. But given where public sentiment stands, a Pakistani govt that joins them would risk committing political suicide,” Michael Kugelman says.

He noted that in the past, "some Pakistani civ[il] and mil[itary] officials had informal links w/Israel. But Islamabad has always linked recognition of Israel to the establishment of a Palestinian state."

"That’s been an ironclad position. So for now, joining the Abraham Accords is a nonstarter for Pak," he added.

Recently, in a response to Trump's demand, Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told Samaa TV on Tuesday (May 26) that Islamabad would not support any agreement that conflicts with the country's "fundamental ideologies."

"Personally, I don't think we should join any such accord that clashes with our fundamental ideologies," Asif said during the interview, as per ANI.

Questioning the credibility of engagement with Israel, the Pakistani Defence Minister added, "How will you sit down with those people whose word cannot be trusted even for a single day?"

"We have a very clear stance that this is not acceptable to us," Asif emphasised while reiterating Islamabad's long-standing position on the issue.

He clarified, "No initiative to join the Abraham Accords has been taken by us, nor has anyone asked us to do that."