King Abdullah II of Jordan, whose country is to host this week’s US-Israeli-Palestinian summit, on Saturday linked the creation of a Palestinian state to a lasting Middle East peace.
The king made the comments in the course of talks with US Middle East envoy William Burns, who arrived in Amman to discuss preparations for Wednesday's summit and the "roadmap" for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
"Achieving security and stability will not be secured without an end to the cycle of violence, an Israeli withdrawal from Arab land and the creation of an independent Palestinian state," Petra news agency quoted the king as telling Burns.
Abdullah said the summit in Aqaba "will be the start of the implementation phase of the roadmap for a lasting peace between the Arabs and Israel".
"Jordan is ready to exert all the efforts needed to guarantee the success of the peace process in the region," the king said. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
