His Majesty King Abdullah II on Monday left Amman starting a two-day visit that will take him to France and Italy.

The King will hold talks with French President Jacques Chirac and Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi and his Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on the situation in the Middle East and developments in the Iraqi and Palestinian scenes in addition to international terrorism.

The talks will also cover ways to develop Jordan's relations with the two countries in various fields.

The King is accompanied by a delegation grouping Prime Minister Faisal Al-Fayez, Royal Court Minister Samir Rifai and Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Basem Awadallah.

HRH Prince Ali bin Al Hussein was sworn in as Regent.