News Brief

(IsraelNN.com) American President George W. Bush is to receive Jordanian King Abdullah II on Wednesday, one day prior to a visit by Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas. The previously unannounced visit of the king resulted from an invitation by the president.

Jordan's Royal Palace said the discussions will focus on Palestinian Authority-Israeli peace talks and the political crisis in Lebanon. President Bush is scheduled to visit Israel in May for the 60th anniversary celebrations, and several Arab powers have urged King Abdullah to ask the President to condition the visit on Israel's accepting the Saudi Arabia 2002 initiative. It calls on Israel to surrender all areas restored to the Jewish state in 1967 and to accept the immigration of several million foreign Arabs who claim to be descendants of Arabs who were encouraged by warring Arab nations to flee Israel during the War of Independence.