King Abdullah II of Jordan emphasized Tuesday the need to advance Middle East peace, saying that resolving the question of Palestine is the key to regional stability.
During his talks with the U.S Secretary of Defense, Robert Ghits, in the Jordanian capital, the Jordanian monarch stated that the two-state solution, which is accepted regionally and internationally, is workable.
King Abdullah reiterated support of the Arab peace initiative, which calls for ending the Arab-Israeli conflict on the basis of full Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Arab territories, in return for normal Arab-Israeli ties and a fair solution to the Palestinian refugee problem. From his part, Secretary Ghits praised the ongoing Jordanian peace efforts, voicing his belief that the Jordanian role is promoting peace in the region.
In the meantime Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates are holding talks on Wednesday to work out means to promote the Arab peace initiative, which the Arab states reaffirmed in their regular summit meeting in March.
Israel had refused the Arab peace proposal, expressing unwillingness to resolve the Palestinian refugee problem on the basis of the United Nations resolution 194 of 1949, which allows return of Palestinians displaced by Israel in 1948 to historical Palestine.
