Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert held talks with King Abdullah II on the Middle East peace process during a surprise visit to the Jordanian capital on Wednesday, the palace said. "The king stressed the need for Palestinian-Israeli negotiations to lead to an agreement based on a two-state solution before the end of this year," it said in a statement, cited by AFP.
"The agreement should address all final-status issues and result in the establishment of an independent Palestinian state," he told Olmert. "Achieving peace requires advancing negotiations within clear mechanisms and specific timelines."
The king also urged the Israeli leader to "work towards improving the daily living conditions of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip," according to the statement.
Mark Regev, Olmert's spokesman, told AFP that "it was a bilateral meeting on bilateral relations and the peace process. They talked about the involvement of Jordan in the peace process."
According to the palace, Olmert briefed King Abdullah on the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, relaunched last November after a US-hosted conference.
© 2008 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
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