AMMAN -- The political undertones surrounding a rare visit by the Israeli foreign minister to a Gulf Arab country to take part in an international forum are overshadowing the content of the meeting on democracy, free trade and sustainable development.

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni did not miss an opportunity to be among her country's historic enemies, by accepting an invitation to take part in the Doha Forum for Free Trade, Development and Democracy in a high-profile visit that may pave the way for Israel's official acceptance by Arab regimes.

It is not the first visit by a high-level Israeli official to Qatar, which has commercial ties with the Jewish state, but reports indicated that Livni received an exceptionally warm reception and managed to meet publicly with a number of Arab officials before she was to address the forum on Monday evening.

Upon her arrival in Doha on Sunday, she was provided with more armed security guards – both Israeli and Qatari – than any other participant, and given four armored cars instead of the one presented to others, given the security risks posed by an unpopular visit by an Israeli official in the region.

Yet when she entered the conference hall, the participants - Arabs with no ties with Israel included - stood up to greet Livni and shake her hand.

She held separate talks with the leaders of Qatar and foreign minister of Oman on Monday in what analysts say signals an embrace by Arab Gulf countries to move toward a more open relationship with the Jewish state.

Livni's meeting with Omani Foreign Minister Yossef bin Alawi bin Abdullah was the first such public meeting in more than seven years.

Although Oman was the first Arab Gulf country to open a trade office in Tel Aviv in 1996, it recalled its representative five months later and shut it down in 2000 at the start of the second Palestinian intifada, saying commercial ties would resume when there is progress in the Palestinian-Israeli peace process.

Thus, the Omani-Israeli talks in Doha focused on the negotiations that were officially re-launched at a Middle East conference in Annapolis in November, which have yet to make progress. Livni aides said the talks also revolved around "the role of the Arab world in the peace process."

But bin Alawi later told reporters that "we don't agree with their [Israelis'] opinions" on the negotiations and would not restore commercial ties until an agreement is reached on the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Egypt, Jordan and Mauritania are the only Arab states to have diplomatic relations with Israel, and the rest of the 22-member Arab League countries have linked – at least publicly – normalizing ties with Israel to resolving the Palestinian question.

Until the 1993 Palestinian-Israeli interim Oslo peace accords, being seen in the same room with an Israeli official was unacceptable by the Arab regimes, and such public appearances eased after the second intifada and Israel's subsequent military assaults.

Arab critics blame Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' resumed meetings with Israeli leaders late last year for opening some Arab doors to allow Israel to slip into in order to secure a level of normalization that absolves the Jewish state from its commitments to the Palestinian question.

Qatar, a close U.S. ally leading a maverick role in the many regional issues and conflicts, argues that keeping channels open with Israel is more helpful to the Palestinian and Arab causes.

Just as it keeps its channels open to Israel, gas-rich Qatar also has close ties with Hamas, the Islamist movement that ousted Abbas' Fatah-led Palestinian Authority from Gaza last June and which the whole world – other than Syria and Iran – has virtually isolated.

Doha also maintains close relations with Syria and Iran, while it hosts the U.S. military's Central Command, which oversees wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The sheikdom is also host to Al-Jazeera news channel, a strong critic of American policy, Israel and pro-Western Arab regimes – though its coverage of Livni's visit to Qatar fell short of the usual criticism of Arab normalization with the Jewish state for obvious reasons.

The emir of Qatar, Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, on Monday hosted Livni for lunch at his palace after holding a formal meeting that included his prime minister, Sheik Hamad bin Jassem, which was described as "very productive."

Bin Jassem, who also acts as foreign minister, said on Sunday his talks with Livni would mainly focus on easing the Israeli blockade on Gaza and a peaceful resolution between the West, Israel and Iran over the latter's nuclear program.

Little information was available of their talks, but commentators expected little results from their discussions since large political gaps divide Israel and Qatar.

Bin Jassem had earlier said that Iran was "an important neighbor to us" and the region's stability; while Livni told the press before her arrival in Doha that she would use the forum and her presence to gather support from the Arab Gulf states against Hamas and Iran.

Israeli media reports quoted her as saying over the weekend that she would convey to Arab officials that "Israel is no longer the enemy" and that "a situation has been created in which the threat is posed by Iran and extremist elements such as Hamas and Hezbollah."

Sources at Al-Jazeera privately told the Middle East Times that the Qatari leaders also tried to persuade Livni to ease the restrictions on the channel's crews and reporters in Jerusalem, but the Israeli foreign minister said the government would do so only "on certain conditions," which were not revealed.

Meanwhile, Livni's presence at the Doha forum has prompted cancellations from some Arab and Iranian participants, including Lebanese House speaker Nabih Berri who was scheduled to address the meeting, and former Lebanese Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh. Both are partners in the Hezbollah-led opposition. Former Iranian President Mohammad Khatami also cancelled his participation.

Some critics accused Qatari leaders of undermining the significance of the boycott by turning it into a trivial joke.

"I have seven cancellations because of your arrival. Don't cause any more problems," Qatar's bin Jassem told Livni jokingly, and perhaps flirtingly, during the opening of the forum Sunday.