AMMAN: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said yesterday that May 28 had been set as a date for his talks with US President Barack Obama in Washington, when he intended to set forth the Palestinians’ “conditions” for resuming peace negotiations with Israel, including cessation of settlement building and demolition of houses in East Jerusalem.
“We plan to visit Cairo and other Arab countries before our May 28 visit to Washington, where we are going to have talks with the US administration on all political issues and set forth conditions for future negotiations,” Abbas told reporters after a meeting with Jordan’s King Abdallah II.
“Our conditions and vision are part of the two-state solution, which also involves halting settlement building and the policy of house demolitions. Our demands are also shared by the Americans as a pre-requisite for resuming dialogue with the Israelis,” Abbas said.
The Palestinian leader said that his talks with King Abdallah focused on the outcome of the monarch’s talks with Obama at the White House on April 21.
The talks between the king and Obama sought to convince the US administration to play “a leading role in re-launching serious negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians on the basis of the two-state solution and within a regional perspective,” a royal court statement said.
King Abdallah and Abbas underscored the importance of “coordinating the Arab stance with a view to carrying out an effective move to ensure a tangible progress is made toward the establishment of an independent Palestinian state,” it added.
“The two Arab leaders demanded a halt to all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories, particularly Jerusalem, and rejected all Israeli steps which seek to change the nature of the holy city through encroachment on its holy places and emptying the city from it population either by deportation or demolition of houses,” the statement said.
They also urged the world community “to shoulder its responsibilities in lifting the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip and ensure the entry of humanitarian aid as well as starting reconstruction of the territory which was the scene for a destructive Israeli attack in January.
King Abdallah, who held similar talks with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia earlier this week, intends also to meet with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak shortly to brief him on the outcome of his talks with Obama, who strongly supported the two-state vision and the Arab peace initiative, officials said.
