Mubarak, Jordanian monarch exchange messages on regional tensions
Jordan-Egypt, Politics, 1/28/2002

Jordan and Egypt yesterday said they were extremely worried over the Middle east tension and urged the US to play an effective involvement to calm the situation.

King Abdullah II of Jordan yesterday got a message from President Hosni Mubarak on the deteriorating situation in the region and coordination of stances ahead of an Arab summit due in Beirut in late March.

The message was handed by Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher who cited identical stands between President Mubarak and the Jordanian monarch.

Emerging from a meeting with Jordanian Prime Minister Ali Abu al-Ragheb, the Egyptian official said that King Abdullah had asked him to convey a message to Mubarak confirming identical views.

"The two countries will make efforts to bring things back to normal and end the siege imposed by Israel on the Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian towns so that negotiations can be resumed," added Maher.

Maher's talks with King Abdullah II came a few hours before the Jordanian monarch embarked on a visit to Saudi Arabia as part of a Gulf tour.

Maher said yesterday's attack in occupied Jerusalem showed that negotiations were the only way to end 16-months of a Palestinian revolt against Israeli occupation.

" We denounce all violent acts against civilians,and the incident of yesterday is another proof that unjust force doesn't achieve security," he said.

"Security is achieved by peace, and peace could only be reached through negotiations," he told a joint press conference with his Jordanian counterpart Marwan al-Maashar

A Palestinian bomber killed one person and wounded dozens of others in Jerusalem's main shopping street in the third such attack in less than a week.

King Abdullah, who later flew to Riyadh for talks with Saudi leaders, is due to meet U.S. President George W. Bush in Washington later this week.

The Jordanian minister said King Abdullah would at the Washington talks "explain the danger of talking about suspending the peace process or contacts with the Palestinian Authority".

The Bush administration has taken an increasingly tough line against Arafat in recent days which drew praise from Israel and a call for U.S. sanctions against the Palestinian leader.

The foreign ministers said Jordan and Egypt, the only two Arab states that have peace treaties with Israel, hoped Bush would not take measures against Arafat's Palestinian Authority.

"This talk (of sanctions against Arafat) must not be fulfilled," Maher said. "The Palestinians have no responsibility in starting the violence. Israel is responsible."

Jordanian Foreign Minister said King Abdullah would explain to U.S. officials the Arab view that they should continue to deal with Arafat.

"The Palestinian Authority is an authority elected by the Palestinian people and President Arafat is also elected by the Palestinian people," he said.

"All sides must deal with the Authority and President Arafat in his capacity as the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people."

Previous Stories:
  Mubarak, Abdullah call on Israelis and Palestinians to resume negotiations   (12/4/2001)
  King Abdullah in Cairo Monday   (12/3/2001)
  Mubarak, Abdullah hold talks in Sharm al-Sheikh   (9/19/2001)

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