Israeli, RI FMs meet in secret: Report

Israeli, RI FMs meet in secret: Report

Agence France-Presse, Jerusalem

Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom has secretly met his
Indonesian counterpart Hassan Wirayuda in New York ahead of the
United Nations General Assembly, Israeli army radio reported on
Wednesday.

Shalom refused to confirm or deny the meeting, telling the
radio station he was unable to discuss the matter.

Indonesia, with close to 90 percent of its 214 million people
Muslims, has no diplomatic ties with Israel and regularly issues
statements of support for the Palestinian cause.

Hassan stressed earlier this month that Jakarta would not
establish diplomatic ties with Israel without a peace deal
between Israel and the Palestinians.

But the report is another sign of Israel hoping to reap
diplomatic dividends within the Muslim world from its pullout
from the Gaza Strip, following landmark talks between Shalom and
his Pakistani counterpart, Khurshid Kasuri.