Palestine Seeking Support From Asean

29.02.2012

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas has called on the 10 members of the Southeast Asian regional bloc, known as Asean, to unite in supporting the Palestinian bid for statehood.
During his meeting with Indonesia’s ambassador to the US, Dino Patti Djalal, in Amman on Tuesday, Abbas said he deeply appreciated Indonesia’s strong support for the nation’s independence and asked the other Asean members to follow suit.
Dino met with Abbas in his private residence to deliver President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s letter.
“President Abbas really hopes that Asean can come out with one voice to support Palestinian independence,” Dino told the Jakarta Globe in a telephone interview from Amman. .
Indonesia, a Muslim-majority country, is a staunch supporter of Palestine and does not have any diplomatic ties with the Jewish state.

Asean has been divided on the Palestine-Israeli conflict, preventing the organization from issuing a united position to support the Palestinian cause

Three Asean members — Thailand, Burma and Singapore — have been reluctant to voice their support for the Palestinian independence because they have good relations with Israel.