His Majesty King Abdullah and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Tuesday hailed “the new spirit” by the Palestinian and Israeli leaderships at landmark summit held on Tuesday at the Egyptian resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh.



In a joint statement read out by Mubarak at the summit, the two leaders said: “We witnessed today a new spirit from the Palestinian and Israeli sides. We felt determination and sincere willingness from them to work together to implement their mutual commitments and to make the required arrangements to build up trust, revive hope and bring back complete normalcy, particularly to the Palestinians' life.”



Both leaders described the outcome of the summit between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon as “the first step towards resuming” the Mideast peace process.



The King and Mubarak reiterated that the way to achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East is through true implementation of relevant international resolutions, the roadmap and the two-state solution.



The two leaders said the Palestinians and the Israelis “equally deserve the life they dream of: A stable and secure life, in which present and future generations enjoy a lasting peace driven by the forces of justice and international legitimacy.”



They stressed that a stable and secure Middle East is a “cornerstone in world peace and security.”



Jordan and Egypt, they vowed, will always be “present and active in efforts aimed at supporting the peace process.”



They voiced hope that the Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and West Bank cities would be fully coordinated with the Palestinians, making “an effective step towards the full implementation of the roadmap and a positive restart of political negotiations.”



The King and Mubarak said that the ultimate goal does not stop at achieving peace on the Palestinian track. “Our efforts today should be followed by moves to revive the Syrian-Lebanese peace track and resume related political negotiations in order to reach a just peaceful solution based on international legitimacy resolutions and the principles of land-for-peace,” the joint statement said.



Also on Tuesday, King Abdullah held separate talks with Mubarak, Abbas and Sharon.



During the meetings, His Majesty the King reiterated that Jordan is keen to rally international support for the Palestinian leadership to establish an independent and viable state. His Majesty said implementing the Roadmap is the key to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and achieve comprehensive security and stability.