Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt and his Portuguese counterpart Luis Amado visited Jordan in a bid to appraise prospects for reinvigorating peace negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel in the light of the ongoing spate of uprisings that swept the Arab world, diplomats said.
They held separate meetings with King Abdallah, Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit and Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh.
“Bakhit underscored the importance of the world community shouldering its ethical responsibility in putting pressure on the Israeli government to stop all unilateral actions that hinder peace efforts and lead to the loss of opportunities at this critical stage through which the region and the world are passing,” a statement from the premier’s office said.
The premier referred mainly to the continued building of Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank that prompted the Palestinian Authority to quit the US-brokered direct talks with Israel at the end of September.
Both King Abdallah and Bakhit assured the European foreign ministers that Jordan was embarking on real political and economic reforms to enable citizens a larger say in the decision-making process.
Jordan was recently the scene for a series of demonstrations demanding swift political reforms, including the enactment of a new election law and arranging early general elections.