JORDAN MONARCH ARRIVED IN TEHRAN FOR LANDMARK VISIT
By Safa Haeri, IPS Editor
PARIS-TEHRAN 2 Sept. (IPS) King Abdallah II of Jordan arrived Tuesday in Tehran for a landmark two-days official visit to a regime that did not stop to castigate his father and the Jordanian Monarchy in the past.
The Jordanian Monarch, leading a high ranking delegation that includes Prime Minister Ali Abu Ragheb, was officially welcomed by the Iranian President Mohammad Khatami at the Sa’d Abad Palace situated in the posh north of the Capital.
This is the first time that a Jordanian Monarch is officially visiting the
Islamic Republic of Iran and though nothing has been said about the topic of
discussions between the two sides, but both Iranian and Arab officials said it
highlights the more important role Jordan wants to play in the region.
The visit is an important step in improving relations between the two countries, which were restored in 1991 after a 10-year break, during which Iran criticised Abdallah's father, the late King Hoseyn, not only for supporting Baghdad in the 1980-1988 Iraq-Iraq war, but also because of his close friendship for the late Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, deposed by the Islamic revolution of 1979.
"Though we have plenty of differences with the Islamic Republic on many issues, including the Road Map and Iraq, yet, Iran is a very important nation and our policy is that it should not be ignored nor isolated", explained Mr. Marwan Mu’asher, the Jordanian Foreign Minister in Paris, answering a question from Iran Press Service concerning the meaning and importance of the visit.
Nabil Sharif, the Jordanian Information Minister had said before departure from Amman that there are plenty of things that can be discussed between the two sides, including promoting economic cooperation and tourism.
"All Muslim countries need to coordinate their efforts and understand each other and try to come up with ways to look into the challenges facing the region", Sharif told the French news agency AFP.
Like Iran, Jordan is also keen to see "occupation forces" get out of the neighbouring Iraq as quickly as possible.
In a press conference at the Foreign Press Centre in Paris, Mr. Mu’asher said Jordan agrees with France to give the United Nations a more important political role in safeguarding the security of Iraq.
Observing that the security situation in Iraq is "getting worse by the day", as seen by the recent bombings of the Jordanian Embassy and the offices of the United Nations in Baghdad as well as the car bomb that killed Ayatollah Mohammad Baqer al-Hakim in Najaf last week, Mr. Mu’asher said time has arrived for giving the international community a more important role in Iraq.
But contrary to Tehran, Amman is an active supporter of the Road Map, which, according to the Jordanian top diplomat, must be "reactivated" in a way that it becomes "inevitable" for creating a fully independent Palestinian State alongside Israel.
Diplomatic and informed press sources said besides Iraq, the peace process and bilateral issues, Iran’s relations with the United States and fighting terrorism would be also discussed between King Abdallah and President Khatami.
However, Mr. Mu’asher, a former Editor of "Jordan Times" and the nation’s first ambassador to the Jewish State told IPS that the Monarch is carrying no message from Washington for the Iranians.
Elsewhere in his press conference, Mr. Mu’asher rejected the idea of an Arab force under Arab commandment to replace the Allied troops in Iraq, observing that not only no Arab nation has come up with the idea, but his impression was that the Iraqis themselves does not want the Americans and the British be replaced by the Arabs.
In his view, the best thing to do to restore normalcy in Iraq is to help the US-controlled Iraqi Provisory Council to pave the way for an effective, fully Iraqi-controlled government, proceeding for drawing a Constitution and national elections. ENDS JORDAN IRAN 2903