After his visit to White House, Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf on Sunday urged his countrymen to consider recognizing Israel, a position strongly opposed by religious parties. "This is the responsibility of the nation to decide. This should be seriously thought over. The media should have an open debate on this," Musharraf said in an interview aired Sunday by the private Geo Television channel. "The debate should be serious. There should be no emotionalism of the extremists," he said. "What is our dispute (with Israel)? We should think," he said. Pakistan has no ties with Israel and its citizens are not allowed to travel to Israel. In Pakistan, where Musharraf is under attack by religious parties and groups, the issue of recognizing Israel has been an emotional one. "Musharraf is paving the way for recognizing Israel," Maulana Fazl-ur Rahman told reporters Sunday in Multan, south of Islamabad. He threatened nationwide protests if Musharraf pressed for Israel's recognition. Rahman is a key leader in a six-party religious alliance called Mutahida Majlis-e-Amal, or United Action Forum, which made strong gains in elections last October. The alliance rules the strategic North West Frontier Province and banked on opposition to the U.S.-led operation in Afghanistan and support for its former Taliban regime. In the interview, Musharraf, who is already facing opposition for joining the U.S.-led anti-terror campaign in Afghanistan, explained that if countries that have disputes with Israel are moving toward peace with it, Pakistan also should rethink its policy. Musharraf also spoke of his visit to the United States last week. Of the 3 US billion dollars aid package announced by President Bush following their meeting, Musharraf said: "We have never had such a package before." Musharraf said his visit to the United States helped to cement military, political and economic ties. **PHOTO CAPTION*** Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf. (AFP/File/Odd Andersen)