US embassy cable - 05AMMAN247

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 000247 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/11/2015 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, KPAL, IS, JO 
SUBJECT: JORDANIANS HOPE PALESTINIAN ELECTIONS WILL JUMP 
START PEACE PROCESS 
 
REF: A. AMMAN 00217 
     B. AMMAN 00044 
 
Classified By: CDA David Hale for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1.  (C)  Jordanians followed the Palestinian elections with 
interest, lauding the Palestinians for the smooth process and 
high voter turnout.  King Abdullah on January 10 called Abu 
Mazen to congratulate him on his election and dispatched FM 
Mulki to Ramallah to congratulate the new Palestinian 
president in person.  Abu Mazen also received Jordanian 
delegation members who had joined the ranks of observers 
during the election process.  Jordanians hope that the 
elections will serve as a step towards reviving direct 
Israeli-Palestinian talks, and several contacts urged all 
parties -- especially Israel and the U.S. -- not to squander 
this opportunity.  End Summary. 
 
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JORDANIANS OBSERVE, LAUD THE PROCESS 
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2.  (C)  Jordanians have taken a keen interest in the 
Palestinian elections, applauding the Palestinians for the 
smooth process and high voter turnout.  King Abdullah on 
January 10 followed an official cable of congratulations with 
a telephone call to Abu Mazen, stressing Jordan's "keenness 
to cooperate and coordinate with the Palestinians to go ahead 
in peace and achieve the aspirations of the Palestinians." 
King Abdullah told reporters after a meeting EU foreign 
policy chief Javier Solana on January 9 that the Palestinian 
elections were "a step towards enabling the Palestinian 
leadership to build their institutions and resume the peace 
process."  After meeting PLO official Farouq Qaddoumi in 
Amman, FM Mulki departed for Ramallah to offer the GOJ's 
congratulations in person.  Press coverage of the elections 
was heavy, dominating front pages in all major Jordanian 
dailies (ref A). 
 
3.  (C)  Abu Mazen on January 10 received Jordanian 
delegation members who had traveled to the West Bank to 
observe the elections.  Former PM and current Senator Abdul 
Salam al-Majali told reporters that Jordan fully supported 
the Palestinian people, and commended the transparency of the 
elections.  Partially in response to public pressure, the GOJ 
had backtracked on its original declaration that it would not 
send observers to the West Bank and Gaza.  Following the 
dispatch of Majali's official delegation (ref B), a 
five-member parliamentary delegation headed by Amman MP 
Mamdouh al-Abbadi traveled to the West Bank on January 8 to 
monitor the elections.  Abbadi told reporters after meeting 
Abu Mazen that their discussions focused on 
"Jordanian-Palestinian relations, which, we stressed, are of 
special and integral importance to us."  Abbadi noted that 
his delegation would monitor the polling and ballot counting 
in Gaza, Hebron and Ramallah, adding that "people are very 
excited about the election process despite the humiliation 
from the occupation."  After his own meeting with Abu Mazen 
in Ramallah on January 6, Majali said that Jordan's 
participation in the monitoring process reaffirms the 
solidarity between Palestinians and Jordanians.  "Israel 
pledged that it will help the Palestinians vote and we are 
here to ensure that it will keep its word," he said, adding 
that Jordan wanted to help ensure the election is held in a 
transparent way. 
 
4.  (C)  Dureid Mahasneh, a Jordanian businessman who 
participated in Jordanian-Israeli peace negotiations in 1994, 
was impressed that the elections proceeded smoothly.  How 
ironic, he lamented to Poloff, that the Palestinians, despite 
their dismal social and economic conditions, would be the 
ones to demonstrate political sophistication and an 
understanding of true democratic principles far beyond those 
on display in most Arab states. 
 
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ABU MAZEN'S WIN A VICTORY FOR MODERATES 
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5.  (C)  Abu Mazen's electoral victory is an achievement for 
the voices of moderation, and the high voter turnout shows 
that people are craving change, according to Hamadeh Faraneh, 
a former member of Parliament and political analyst.  Noting 
that the election reinforced public support for Fatah at 
HAMAS's expense, he commented that Abu Mazen won on the 
merits of his positions, not his personality.  Highlighting 
the public comments by a HAMAS official congratulating Abu 
Mazen after the election, he told Poloff that HAMAS is 
currently in a position of weakness that should be exploited. 
 
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MAINTAINING MOMENTUM CRUCIAL 
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6.  (C)  Some Jordanians are not so optimistic that the 
election of Abu Mazen will lead to a new chapter in the peace 
process.  Dalia Farouki, who works with the National Center 
for Human Rights in Amman, commented to Poloff just before 
the election that Abu Mazen's success as President depends 
heavily on Israeli actions.  Drawing on her experiences 
during visits to her family's home in Jerusalem, she says 
that people are psychologically scarred from more than four 
years of violence and destruction.  In her view, they are 
much more skeptical of politicians and wary of empty promises 
than before the second intifada, and much difficult work 
remains ahead to move beyond the current impasse.  She said 
that many ordinary Jordanians (and Palestinians) are not 
convinced that the Israelis (and the U.S.) are truly 
committed to the establishment of a Palestinian state, and 
will be looking for concrete actions to prove otherwise. 
Mahasneh concurred, urging that the United States become 
actively re-engaged to maintain the momentum generated by the 
election. 
 
7.  (U)  Baghdad minimize considered. 
 
Please visit Embassy Amman's classified web site at 
http://www.state.sgov/p/nea/amman/ or access the site through 
the Department of State's SIPRNET home page. 
HALE