By NNN-KUNA
Cairo : Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and visiting Jordanian King Abdullah II have agreed Saturday to push ahead with the efforts to help the Palestinians and the Israelis reach a peace deal.
Any deal on Middle East peace should envisage the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, Egyptian Presidential Spokesman Ambassador Suleiman Awwad said in a press briefing following the summit meeting between Mubarak and Abdullah II here.
The summit talks which lasted for more than three hours in Egypt’s Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheikh focused on the developments of the situations in the Palestinian territories and Lebanon as well as the bilateral ties between Egypt and Jordan.
The two leaders share identical views on the regional and international issues, the spokesman pointed out.
They agreed to make concerted efforts with other regional and international major players, including the United States and other members of the international Quartet as well as Israel to reach a peaceful settlement for the Middle East conflict.
“The efforts aim to generate momentum for the final status talks between Palestine and Israel following the Annapolis Peace Conference, hosted by the United States in November, 2007.
“The state of the final status talks so far casts doubt on the possibility to reach peaceful settlement in the region before the elapse of the current US administration term in office,” Awwad regretted.
“The Annapolis meeting is facing a real test. The European Union (a quartet partner) needs to play a bigger role in the peace process instead of the role of a mere donor,” Awwad quoted Mubarak as saying to the Jordanian monarch.
“Egypt is working with Jordan and other Arab countries to relieve the suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza Strip and lift the siege imposed on them by Israel.
“As an occupying, Israel can not evade the legal responsibility for the protection of civilians in line with the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949,” the spokesman asserted.
As for Lebanon, Mubarak and Abdullah II have renewed support for the Arab initiative for Lebanon which aimed to revive accord among the Lebanese political forces and develop a compromise among them on the presidential elections, he noted.
The spokesman hailed the Egyptian-Jordanian ties as “very positive,” noting that there were no problems between the two nations.
“The two leaders also mulled bilateral issues including Egypt’s gas exports to Jordan, the registration of Jordanian pharmaceuticals in Egypt and the Egyptian expatiates in Jordan.
The talks between the two leaders touched on the agenda of coming Arab Summit, due in Damascus in March, and efforts to ensure its success, Awwad went on to say.
King Abdullah II arrived in Sharm El-Sheikh earlier Saturday on top of a senior-level delegation, including Prime Minister Nader Al-Thahabi, for a state visit to Egypt.
The visit, the first of its kind in 2008, aims to coordinate stances of the two Arab countries ahead of anticipated tour of Middle East countries by US State Secretary Condoleezza Rice.