King Abdullah II returns home

Amman
15 June 2002

His Majesty King Abdullah II Saturday returned home following a European tour including France, Belgium and Britain.

The king's talks with European officials focused on ending the circle of violence and defusing tension in the Palestinian territories, in addition to conveying the Arab viewpoint regarding the Arab Israeli conflict which is still pressing development efforts in the region and Arab countries in particular.

His Majesty's meeting in Brussels with EU Higher Representative Javier Solana was an opportunity to discuss the international views, particularly American and European, to end the circle of tension and convene the awaited international meeting with the participation of parties concerned in the peace process.

In this regard, His Majesty stressed the necessity that the proposed international meeting should be based on the security council's resolutions and the Arab peace initiative which clearly expressed a genuine Arab desire to achieve a comprehensive peace that would meet the interests of all parties.

His Majesty pointed out that partitioned solutions have proved to be infeasible under the light of the continued circle of violence and Israeli occupation against the Palestinian people.

He stressed that any future negotiations should be linked to a clear timetable and should lead to establishment of a viable Palestinian state.

The King's talks, with King of Belgium, attended by Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah and Queen Paula, focused on Jordan's relations with European countries, mechanisms of activating bilateral cooperation between the two friendly countries, particularly in the economic fields, the Jordanian European partnership relations, and Belgium's contribution to the peace efforts in the region.

His Majesty's visit to NATO headquarter and his meeting with NATO's Secretary General Lord Robertson, have come within the framework of political and diplomatic effort the king leads, where discussions focused on the current situation in the Middle East and cooperation with NATO. The meeting touched on the Jordanian and Arab view to solve the Arab Israeli conflict, including the refugees issue, where His Majesty stressed the necessity that the coming solution should take this issue in consideration in accordance with the Security Council's resolutions and the Arab peace initiative.

His Majesty's speech to the European parliament in Strasburg echoed the historical relations that link our region to Europe, where the King urged Europe to contribute to solving the Middle East crisis, due to Europe's historical legacy.

In his speech, His Majesty pointed out that under the light of current situation, neither Palestinians nor Israelis have become capable of taking steps that would lead them towards an acceptable final settlement. We should not allow the process to be a hostage of those who chose to hinder peace, His Majesty said.

The King drew the attention of European friends to the fact that we will not witness a really stable and prosperous Middle East, and will not witness political and economic security unless a solution for the Palestinian Israeli situation is found. The Jordanian European partnership agreement, which entered implementation as of last month, triggered deliberations pertaining Jordanian European cooperation and the necessity to further boost these relations forward.

In his remarks on the King's speech, Head of European Parliament hailed His Majesty's accomplishments since accession to the Throne through launching the legislative, social and economic reform plan. The European parliament pledged that Europe will offer every aid to Jordan to go ahead in the reform plans.

During his meeting with Head of the European Commission Roman Prody, His Majesty expressed hope that the Jordanian European partnership agreement will have positive outcome pertaining the Jordanian economy.

The King's discussions with Prody focused also on the situation in the Middle East and the international and European efforts exerted to end the circle of violence and bring the peace process back to the right track.