King and Swedish Prime Minister Hold Press Conference

Amman
07 October 2003

His Majesty King Abdullah affirmed that there was no alternative for the peace process and if "we do not move forward in the peace mechanism this would the end of the channel and the Palestinians and Israelis will lose their lives."



Speaking at a joint press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Goran Persson, King Abdullah stressed the necessity to bring the road map back into track because there was no other alternative although "the people are not optimistic."



"However the situation is difficult we will all do our utmost to solve the issues on the ground and move forward. We will never give up," the King said.



In reply to a question on the new Palestinian government, King Abdullah hoped that Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia would be able to work with the Israelis and the Americans in the future to implement the road map and achieve peace sought by all.



On the recent Israeli attack on Syria, the King said "what we have seen in the past two days does not encourage people that we are moving to the better but the surprise will be greater if the international community allows the situation to go beyond control.



The Swedish Premier said his talks with King Abdullah focused on three main topics: means of cementing bilateral relations, the situation in Iraq and Iran in light of the King's recent visit to Tehran the Middle East peace process and how to relaunch peace talks anew.