Jordanian leader meets US Sec. of State

AMMAN, April 30 (KUNA) -- Jordan's King Abdullah II met on Monday with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is on a tour in the region.
The meeting, focused on ways to develop Jordanian-US strategic partnership and a number of issues of mutual concern, foremost of which are efforts to achieve peace and bring about security and stability in the region, Jordan news agency said (Petra).
King Abdullah congratulated the US Secretary of State on assuming his new post, reaffirming the deep ties between the two friendly countries, and voicing Jordan's appreciation of the United States' support for many development programs and to enable the Kingdom to deal with the repercussions of regional crises.
The Jordanian leader said regional and international efforts should be intensified to find political horizons for progress towards resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict through re-launching serious and effective negotiations between the two sides based on the two-state solution, leading to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the Palestinian national soil with East Jerusalem as its capital.
King Abdullah reiterated that the two-state solution is the only path to ending the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and constitutes a key and fundamental step towards achieving security and stability in the Middle East, asserting the pivotal US role in ending the stalemate in the political track and achieving just and comprehensive peace in the region.
The talks also touched on the latest developments in the Syrian crisis and the need to back efforts aimed at reaching a political solution within the Geneva framework, in a manner that preserves the unity of Syria and the cohesion of its people.
Meanwhile, US State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert said in a statement that Pompeo has also met with Japanese counterpart Taro Kono in Amman during which they discussed issues of "regional and global concern." The statement noted Pompeo and Kono "reaffirmed our commitment to achieving the permanent and verifiable denuclearization of North Korea and to continuing close coordination on this issue." They also expressed their joint commitment "to a free and open Indo-Pacific and enhancing a free, fair, and reciprocal US-Japan economic relationship," the statement added. (end) si.mjb.mb