Jordan wants ‘influential powers’ to help revive peace process

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah met on Sunday with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius who is currently visiting the Kingdom as part of a regional tour. 

During a meeting that was held at Al Husseiniya Palace, in the presence of HRH Prince Feisal, the King commended Jordanian-French ties, stressing Jordan's commitment to strengthening them in various fields.

The King also stressed Jordan's commitment to maintaining consultations with France in a manner that serves the interests of the two countries, according to a Royal Court statement. 

The two sides reviewed the latest regional developments, mainly the efforts exerted to confront the danger of terrorism. They also addressed the need to adopt a comprehensive approach to combat terrorism in partnership and coordination among concerned parties.  

Regarding the Middle East peace efforts, the King asserted the need for intensive action by influential parties, including France, to create conditions conducive for the revival of the peace process between the Palestinians and the Israelis, on the basis of the two-state solution and international resolutions. 

Fabius said his country is keen on boosting its relations with Jordan and on coordinating with it regarding the various current issues, commending Jordan's moderate role under the leadership of King Abdullah.    

At a joint press conference with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh Sunday, the visiting French official stressed the urgency of resuming Israeli-Palestinian talks, warning that any further gridlock in the peace process will lead to conflict.

He said that for 40 years, there had been negotiations but they have never been successful. “We want to get out of this bottleneck,” and provide a new method, Fabius added.

Judeh said the Palestinian cause is a “higher interest for Jordan, and our goal remains to establish an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital”.

“This is the stance of Jordan… and we also affirm the important role of France as a country and member of the European Union,” Judeh told the press.

The French foreign minister’s visit to Jordan is part of a trip to the Middle East to promote a French-led initiative that seeks to revive the Palestinian-Israeli peace process and re-launch talks between the concerned parties.

The French initiative, according to Fabius includes resuming talks with help from an international support group comprising Arab states, the European Union and UN Security Council members, backed by a UN resolution.

However, for the French foreign minister, the urgent issue now is to convince both parties, the Israelis and the Palestinians to resume negotiations. But this will not be accomplished without compromising, according to Fabius. 

He also explained that France can provide suggestions on the framework of the peace process, but cannot force Israel or Palestine to accept them as they are.

“Our priority is safety and security… if there is no justice for Palestinians, there will be no peace… and there should be a guarantee for Israel’s security at the same time,” Fabius stressed.

Meanwhile, prior to the press conference both ministers discussed other issues of concern to the region, where both stressed the need to have political solutions for the crises in Syria, Yemen and Libya. They also discussed supporting the government of Iraq in its war against Daesh and anti-terror efforts to counter terrorism and extremism.

The French minister said he invited Jordan to take part in a conference about the protection of minorities, which will take place in Paris in September this year.