Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar has rejected a call from Israel for dialogue aimed at reaching a resolution to the Middle East crisis, a report said Saturday.
"Our refusal to enter into dialogue (with Israel) has nothing to do with race or religion," Syed Hamid was quoted as saying by the Malay language Utusan Malaysia newspaper.
"If they continue to trample international law, how can we sit and hold a dialogue with them," he said.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on a visit to Sarawak state on Borneo island Saturday confirmed that Malaysia would not hold any talks with Israel.
"Malaysia does not have any relations or diplomatic ties with Israel. So, the question of having a dialogue with Tel Aviv does not arise at all," he was quoted as saying by Bernama news agency.
On Friday, Israel's ambassador to neighbouring Singapore Ilan Ben-Dov called for a constructive dialogue with Malaysia and Indonesia on problems in the Middle East.
His call came a day after Malaysia hosted an emergency gathering of Muslim leaders from the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) who condemned Israeli aggression in Lebanon. Abdullah is the OIC chairman.
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