Malaysia's Abdullah calls for push on Middle East peace deal

LONDON, Jan. 23 Kyodo

World leaders need to find a lasting solution to the plight of the Palestinians if they are to defuse tensions between the West and Muslim nations, Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Tuesday.

Abdullah said it was also important to tackle the economic problems of many Muslim countries in order to improve relations.

The prime minister, who is visiting London, said he did not believe that the current tensions were the result of a ''clash of civilizations'' between Western and Muslim nations.

People from all different faiths shared the same values and conflicts around the world were instead generated due to a ''clash of interests.''

Speaking to an audience at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, he said that while it was tempting to use the ''clash of civilizations'' argument, it was also incorrect to do so.

''There is nothing incompatible in the two civilizations (Christian and Muslim). We share the same basic values,'' he said. Conflicts were caused by the ''pursuit of power, aspiring for land and resources.''

Abdullah said that in order to ease tensions between Muslims and the West, world powers needed to push for a lasting peace deal in Israel which would give the Palestinians a viable homeland. Once this issue has been resolved, fundamentalist terrorism will start to decline.

He said that he hoped that the Organization of the Islamic Conference -- a grouping of 57 states which promotes the welfare of Muslims globally -- would play a part in the reconstruction of Iraq. Abdullah also told his audience he wanted the OIC to encourage more economic cooperation between Muslim nations.

He said the real threat for many Muslim countries was poverty and illiteracy. Abdullah called for a ''jihad (holy war) on poverty.''

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