His Majesty King Abdullah on Thursday reiterated that establishing an independent Palestinian state is a top Jordanian priority.

King Abdullah told a group of Palestinian thinkers and opinion leaders at a meeting that Jordan is committed to exerting diplomatic and political efforts to revive the Middle East peace process and push for resuming Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.

The King said Jordanian, Palestinian and Israeli opinion leaders play an important role to promote peace and help realise Mideast peoples' aspiration for ending the conflict.

His Majesty called on the thinkers to explain to their Israeli counterparts that Arabs are strongly committed to peace.

The King added that gathering momentum in the Israeli society was necessary for backing international peace efforts.

King Abdullah said the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, which enjoys Arab consensus, provides a suitable launchpad for Palestinian-Israeli negotiations that would lead to tangible results.

The King also said peoples of the region have no option but to achieve a just peace that would end Israeli occupation, establish a viable Palestinian state and guarantee security for the Israelis.

The Jordan Times