Jordan urges Israel to adopt Arab peace plan

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Source: CCTV.com | 04-20-2007 08:24

In Jordan, King Abdullah has met an Israeli delegation headed by its acting President and parliamentary speaker, Dalia Itzik.

Abdullah is encouraging Israel not to turn down a land-for-peace initiative and waste what he calles an "historic opportunity" to the conflict with its Arab neighbors.

The delegation's Jordanian visit comes a day after the Arab League picked Jordan and Egypt to take the lead in approaching Israel to promote an Arab peace plan.

Jordan and Egypt are the only two Arab countries to have signed peace treaties with the Jewish state.

Thursday's meeting between King Abdullah and Dalia Itzik is also the first time a top Israeli official and an Arab leader are conducting direct talks about the land-for-peace initiative.

King Abdullah says Israel should not squander this historic opportunity to resolve decades of conflict in the Middle East. The Arab plan aims to ensure that Israel is recognized by all Arab states and is truly integrated into the region.

The Saudi-drafted plan was introduced in 2002 and revived at last month's Arab summit in Riyadh.

It offers Israel normal ties with all Arab states in return for a full withdrawal from the lands seized in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. The initiative also aims to create a Palestinian state and provide a solution to the Palestinian refugee problem.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said he sees positive points in the peace initiative.

But Israel opposes the return of Palestinian refugees to their former homes in what is now the Jewish state. It also wants to hold on to major settlement blocs in the occupied West Bank.

Editor:Du Xiaodan