The foreign ministers of Jordan and Israel met for the third time. Jordan says the purpose of the meetings is the need to resume peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. Jordan sees the formation of two independent neighboring states as the only solution to the Middle East crisis.
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi held a face-to-face meeting on Tuesday, March 2 (March 12).
This is the third meeting between the foreign ministers of Jordan and Israel in the past three months. The latest meeting, like the previous ones, took place near the Jordan River Bridge, the country's crossing into the West Bank.
According to a statement from the Jordanian Foreign Ministry, Safadi told the Israeli foreign minister that “serious and effective” Israeli-Palestinian talks should resume with the aim of forming two neighboring states. This, he said, is the only way to establish peace and stability in the Middle East.
The foreign ministers of the two countries discussed recent developments in the region and internationally, including in light of the new US administration's call for the resumption of peace talks.
There have been no direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians in the past seven years.
The last time was in April 2014 when then-US Secretary of State John Kerry tried to revive the peace talks, but his efforts were unsuccessful.
According to a statement from the Jordanian Foreign Ministry, Safadi told the Israeli foreign minister that the country's settlement construction in the West Bank must stop because it "destroys all opportunities for achieving a just peace."
On the other hand, Ashkenazi said that he spoke with the Jordanian Foreign Minister about developing trade and economic relations and expanding civil cooperation with Jordan and the Palestinians.
Gabi Ashkenazi wrote in a Twitter message: "We discussed issues such as trade, exports and imports, water, tourism, and consular matters."
Jordan signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1994, becoming the second Arab country to establish diplomatic relations with Tel Aviv, after Egypt.
Last year, the UAE and Bahrain, and then Sudan and Morocco, moved towards normalizing their relations with Israel.
