Page 8 - ARUBA TODAY

A8 WORLD NEWS
Monday 22 January 2018

Jordan urges Pence

to ‘rebuild trust’

after Jerusalem pivot

By KEN THOMAS is seen as a challenge to
Associated Press Jordan, where a large seg-
AMMAN, Jordan (AP) — Jor- ment of the population is of
dan’s king appealed Sun- Palestinian origin.
day to Vice President Mike Pence told the king that
Pence to “rebuild trust and the U.S. has committed
confidence” in the possibil- “to continue to respect
ity of a two-state solution to Jordan’s role as the custo-
the Israeli-Palestinian con- dian of holy sites, that we
flict, following fallout from take no position on bound-
the Trump administration’s aries and final status.” It
decision to recognize Jeru- was a message Pence re-
salem as Israel’s capital. layed Saturday in talks with
Pence tried to reassure the Egypt’s president.
monarch that the U.S. was Later, after meeting U.S.
committed to restarting troops near the Syrian bor-
peace efforts and to a two- der, Pence said he and
state solution, if both sides Abdullah had “a very frank
agree. discussion.”
Such a caveat deviates “Look, friends occasionally Palestinians burn a poster of U.S. President Mike Pence as they protest his visit to Israel in Bethlehem,
from long-standing U.S. sup- have disagreements and West Bank, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018.
port for that approach as we agreed to disagree on Associated Press
the only possible outcome the decision by the United in the West Bank, Gaza Strip off a meeting with Pence rial.
of any peace deal. States to recognize Jerusa- and east Jerusalem, lands that had been scheduled Netanyahu called Pence
Trump’s announcement on lem as the capital of Israel. Israel captured in 1967. for mid-December. “a great friend of Israel”
Jerusalem last month infuri- But what we agreed on Another cause of concern In a new expression of that and said there was “no
ated the Palestinians, who was the need for all par- for Jordan is the Trump ad- snub, Abbas overlapped alternative for American
seek the Israeli-annexed ties to come back to the ministration’s decision to with Pence in Jordan from leadership” in the peace
eastern sector of the city as table,” Pence said. move the U.S. Embassy in Saturday evening to mid- process.
a future capital. They ac- “The Palestinian Author- Israel from Tel Aviv to Jeru- day Sunday, when the “Whoever is not ready to
cused the U.S. of siding with ity has been absent from salem. Palestinian leader flew to talk with the Americans
Israel and said Washington direct negotiations since Jordan vehemently op- Brussels for a meeting with about peace — does not
can no longer serve as a 2014. And I hope I im- poses such a move if taken European Union foreign want peace,” he said at a
mediator. pressed upon King Abdul- ahead of an Israeli-Palestin- ministers Monday. There, meeting of ambassadors in
Jerusalem is the emo- lah our earnest desire to ian partition deal. Abbas is expected to urge Jerusalem.
tional centerpiece of the restart the peace process,” Israel views Jerusalem as its EU member states to rec- Palestinians in the West
long-running conflict, and Pence said. unified capital. ognize a state of Palestine Bank protested Pence’s ar-
Trump’s policy shift set off Abdullah expressed con- An international consensus in the pre-1967 lines, and to rival by burning posters with
protests and condemna- cerns about the regional has long held that the city’s step up involvement in me- his image on them.q
tion across Arab and Mus- fallout from the Jerusalem final status should be decid- diation.
lim countries. decision. ed through negotiations, Nabil Abu Rdeneh, an Ab-
It posed a dilemma for “Today we have a major which was also U.S. policy bas adviser, reiterated that
Abdullah, a staunch U.S. challenge to overcome, going back decades. “the U.S. is no longer ac-
ally who derives his politi- especially with some of the Palestinians view Trump’s ceptable as a mediator.”
cal legitimacy in large part rising frustrations,” he said. recognition of Jerusalem as Pence was scheduled to
from the Hashemite dy- He described the Pence Israel’s capital as a blatant- hold meetings on Mon-
nasty’s role as guardian of visit as a mission “to rebuild ly one-sided move. day with Israeli Prime Min-
a key Muslim site in Jerusa- trust and confidence” in Palestinian President Mah- ister Benjamin Netanyahu,
lem. getting to a two-state solu- moud Abbas said he would deliver an address to the
Any perceived threat to tion, in which a state of Pal- not meet with Trump admin- Knesset and visit the Yad
Muslim claims in the city estine would be established istration officials and called Vashem Holocaust memo-