Baghdad denies sending message to Washington

Baghdad has denied sending a message to the US administration though Amman, as announced by Jordan's King Abdullah upon heading for the US.

The Jordanian chief of the royal court, Abdul Karim al-Kabareiti, said the Jordanian king, who will meet with the US President Bill Clinton on Tuesday, is not carrying any "certain" Iraqi message.

In Baghdad a source who refused to be identified said, "What had been said by Iraqi Vice President Tareq Aziz to the Jordanian leadership was not a message addressed to any side. What was given by Aziz was a comprehensive briefing that made it clear for the Jordanian leadership in case it will be desirous to deal with the Iraqi question in the contacts Jordan carries out on the Arab and international levels."

The source added, "The short visit by Tareq Aziz to Jordan last Sunday came at the desire of the Jordanian side in order to brief the Jordanian leadership on the Iraqi vision towards the situation in the UN Security Council and the Iraqi relations with several Arab and foreign states."

Al-Kabareiti, who is accompanying the Jordanian king on his visit, said, "We do not carry any certain Iraqi message. His majesty will discuss with the US officials issues of concern to Jordan."

He continued "We continuously hold talks with the Iraqis concerning the situation, and this is not new," in reference to the talks Aziz held in Amman.