Israel must make a choice between integrating into the region or remaining isolated, Jordan's King Abdullah II said Friday as he called on the US to fully back Palestinian statehood. "Israel now has to make its choice," the king said in a speech in Washington.
The Jewish state can "integrate into the region ... or to remain fortress Israel, isolated, holding itself and the entire region hostage to continued confrontation."
Referring to the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, which defined Arab conditions for the creation of a Palestinian state, the monarch said Israel has been presented with a plan that offers it "a place in its neighborhood." Washington's commitment to Palestinian statehood must be "unambiguous in deeds as well as words," the king added,according to AFP.
"Israel must know that attempting to delay this (two-state solution) will be disastrous for its own future" as well as for the Palestinians, he added. "Every country, and perhaps the world, sees the United States as the key to peace in the Middle East ... tackling the issue head on is imperative.
"We do not have time to engage in another open-ended process ... every missed opportunity has alienated people," he added.
"Now is the time for the United States to lead (and make sure) no more time is wasted," said Abdullah. A moment of truth is here for all who claim to seek peace and justice. "Through its own focus and through its own resolve the United States will set the standard."
