Jordan's King Abdullah II addressed U.S. President-elect Barack Obama on Sunday, inviting him to follow in the tradition of past U.S. presidents by imposing pressure on Israeli Jews and Arabs to formulate a peace treaty.
Suggesting that Jordan also wants a piece of the peace pie, Abdullah told Jordanian journalists, "I look forward to working with U.S. President-elect Barack Obama to end the (PA-Israeli -ed.) conflict in the region and reach comprehensive peace based on a two-state solution," adding that Jordan, which signed a peace agreement with Israel in 1994, will "continue its efforts to end the suffering of the Palestinians."
Jordan's king accentuated his statements with an Arab-Israeli conflict-related meeting with Austrian President Heinz Fischer, who is in Jordan on a three-day visit to focus on strategies regarding Israel and a new Palestinian state.
In a joint statement following the meeting, both national leaders said negotiations were an immediate imperative, saying peace talks are in a "very critical stage," despite a major increase in rocket attacks by Gaza Arabs and rock throwing attacks in the Jewish biblical lands of Judea and Samaria.
The Middle East Quartet, comprised of the European Union, Russia, United Nations and United States, also insisted Sunday that Arabs and Israeli Jews plug away toward a treaty, at a meeting in Egypt's resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.