Jordan King warns of fading opportunity for peace, urges immediate talks 

(MENAFN - Jordan Times) His Majesty King Abdullah has warned that chances of peace will fade if serious negotiations do not start immediately to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict according to the two-state solution.

He added that a "continuation of the status quo and a failure to establish an independent and viable Palestinian state will send the Middle East into many decades of instability".

His Majesty made the remarks during a conversation session moderated by Newsweek Editor Fareed Zakaria at the World Economic Forum in Davos late last month.

"Actually this is probably the first time where I am somewhat pessimistic. As we all know, the core issue in the region is the Israeli-Palestinian issue. And as you said, it has been going on for many decades: so much suffering, so much frustration, and it can only get worse if we don't solve the problem," the Monarch stated, adding that the entire international community will be paying the price for not solving the Palestinian issue.

The King stressed that Jordan will not have any role in the West Bank, indicating that the only credible, viable way of solving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is the two-state solution that enables the Israelis and Palestinians to live together.

His Majesty stressed that the injustice towards the Palestinian people allows other state and non-state actors to assume the role of the defenders of the Palestinians.

During the session, King Abdullah underlined the need for a peaceful solution to solve the issue of Iran's nuclear ambitions, saying that Jordan refuses any military solution against Iran because it is an important and significant country in the region.

Emphasising that every country has a right to pursue peaceful nuclear energy, the King stressed the need for transparency in nuclear programmes throughout the region, including Israel.

"The argument that I sometimes hear in circles is the Iranians are pursuing a military programme and therefore this is a threat to Israel. But if we solve the Israeli-Palestinian problem, why would Iranians want to spend so much money on a military programme?"

Regarding terror and extremism, the Monarch said that Muslims stand for tolerance, acceptance and humanity, and that those who pretend to be Muslims but desecrate the name of Islam through terrorist acts are trying to hijack the religion.

He expressed pride in the Jordan Armed Forces and security services for being able to combat terror groups, who, he stressed, have nothing to do with Islam.

"Our role is to protect our citizens, to protect our country, but equally important is to protect our faith," he said, adding: "If we felt that people are going to target Jordan, we would target them. And my message is clear: As long as you continue to try and hurt the citizens of my country we have the right to protect ourselves."

The King underlined Jordan's efforts to reflect the real image of Islam including the Amman Message, which he called an effort at outreach among faiths, in addition to the Common Word, a Jordanian-inspired initiative to bring Muslim and Christian communities together.

King Abdullah stressed that Jordan is determined to move forward in its reform and development process, pointing to the decentralisation plan, which he said will allow Jordanians to move democracy in the right direction and lead to political reforms.

"It is a partnership between me and the people of being able to move society so that they are capable of moving democracy forward and I know that Jordanians have it in them and have the capability, and I hope that as we start with decentralisation that is going to move Jordan strongly forward," the King added.