Judeh, Erekat discuss Mideast peace process

AMMAN — Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh and chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat on Monday discussed the latest developments in efforts to revive the Palestinian-Israeli peace negotiations, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

During the meeting, Judeh re-emphasised the centrality of the Palestinian question, reiterating Jordan's keenness on relaunching serious and effective peace talks between the Palestinians and the Israelis that lead to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the pre-1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital. 

Judeh also said that the independent Palestinian state goal lies at the heart of Jordan’s strategic interests, as the Kingdom has stakes in all final status issues.

Judeh also stressed the Kingdom's firm response to all Israeli unilateral measures in Jerusalem and its holy sites, especially in Al Haram Al Sharif, highlighting the Kingdom's custodianship of the Old City's holy sites.

For his part, Erekat expressed the Palestinians' appreciation for Jordan's “endless support” to their cause and its ongoing efforts to help them realise their ambition for statehood. 

Following shuttle diplomacy by US Secretary of State John Kerry, direct negotiations between the Palestinians and the Israelis began on July 29, 2013 and were supposed to meet a nine-month deadline to reach a peace agreement by mid-2014. The talks failed and two months later Israel launched a fierce campaign against the Gaza Strip.