King Abdullah for resuming Middle East peace talks

King Abdullah II of Jordan has underlined the importance of resuming talks on the Syrian track at a time when the Japanese prime minister stressed Japan's backing for boosting the Middle East peace process.

In a lecture he gave at a Tokyo university, King Abdullah, currently visiting Japan, said that resuming Syrian - Israeli peace talks, which have been pending since February 1996, would strengthen the Middle East peace process. He urged Israel and parties concerned, especially the US, to give priority to building a genuine peace in the region.

King Abdullah continued that Israel has to show its good intention through suspending building of settlements and to give up taking any unilateral new measures in the occupied city of Jerusalem.

For his part, Japanese Premier Keizo Obuchi said his country will give maximum support to giving the Middle East peace process a push forward.