King discusses peace process with US official

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Wednesday received US acting assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs, David Satterfield, at Basman Palace, a Royal Court statement said.  

During the meeting, the King and Satterfield discussed the strategic partnership between Jordan and the US and mechanisms for boosting joint cooperation.

Talks also tackled the peace process, with the King stressing the need for scaling up international efforts to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and reach a just and lasting peace on the basis of a two-state solution, leading to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, according to the statement. 

Discussions also touched on regional issues and crises and efforts to reach political solutions to them, as well as efforts in the war on terror within a holistic strategy.

The meeting was attended by Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, Adviser to His Majesty and Director of the Office of His Majesty Manar Dabbas and US Chargé d’Affaires in Amman Jim Barnhart, the statement added.

Also on Wednesday, Prime Minister Omar Razzaz met with Satterfield and his accompanying delegation at the Prime Ministry, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Both sides discussed during the meeting bilateral relations and the means of enhancing them in all fields, in addition to the latest developments in the region.

The premier and Satterfield reviewed the outcomes of last week’s London initiative to support economic development, with Razzaz stressing that Jordan would focus during the current and future period on increasing economic growth, creating jobs and attracting investments, according to Petra.

The premier also stressed that the government will follow up on London initiative’s outcomes to ensure achieving its sought-after objective.

For his part, Satterfield affirmed the US’ support for Jordan, in order to enable it to continue its important role at the regional and international levels.

Satterfield also had a separate meeting with Safadi at the Foreign Ministry later in the day, which also went over bilateral ties and means to develop them, Petra said.

The two sides stressed the need for continuing efforts to increase cooperation on all levels, and discussed regional developments and means of addressing them in a way that achieves security and stability in the Middle East.