US embassy cable - 03AMMAN3261

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 003261 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARN, NEA/PA, NEA/AIA, INR/NESA, R/MR, 
I/GNEA, B/BXN, B/BRN, NEA/PPD, NEA/IPA FOR ALTERMAN 
USAID/ANE/MEA 
LONDON FOR GOLDRICH 
PARIS FOR O'FRIEL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
 
TAGS: KMDR,  JO 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON SHARM EL-SHEIKH AND AQABA 
SUMMITS 
 
 
                     News Reports 
 
 -- All dailies on June 4 led with reports, continued 
on the inside pages, on the Sharm  El-Sheikh summit. 
In his address, King Abdullah stressed that the 
Palestinian issue was the core of the Arab-Israeli 
conflict and that this was a historic opportunity for 
peace. President Bush's speech at the Sharm summit was 
reported in frontpage headlines. He was quoted saying 
that the world needs a Palestinian State and that a 
free trade zone within the Middle East should be 
established to guarantee stability. Another leading 
report mentioned that Jordan is hosting the Bush-Abbas- 
Sharon summit today in Aqaba and the mechanisms to 
implement the Roadmap will be discussed. The center- 
left, influential Arabic daily,  Al-Dustour, led with 
the headline: "The King Hosts the 'Birth of A 
Palestinian State' Summit in Aqaba Today" All dailies 
noted that the differences on the issue of "terrorism" 
that delayed the Sharm El-Sheikh summit's opening 
session and caused some participating leaders to 
cancel the delivery of their scheduled speeches. 
 
Other related frontpage reports said that Secretary of 
State Powell warned Palestinian President Arafat not 
to do anything that would obstruct the peace process. 
It was also reported that the Arab and U.S. statements 
in Sharm agreed on the rejection of terrorism and 
violence and called for concessions from Israel. 
National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice was quoted 
as saying that President Bush did not ask for the 
return of the Egyptian and Jordanian ambassadors to 
Israel. 
 
-- The G-8 Summit in Evian concluded. All dailies 
carried either frontpage or inside page reports on the 
conclusion of the G-8 summit, which issued a final 
communiqu stressing on the sovereignty of Iraq, 
expressing support for the Roadmap, and calling for 
the combat of terrorism. 
 
                 Editorial Commentary 
 
Editorial commentaries dealt with the Sharm and Aqaba 
summits. Commentators expressed cautious optimism over 
the U.S. stand on the Palestinian issue and considered 
the Aqaba summit a great historic opportunity for 
peace, calling for the exertion of decisive U.S. 
pressures on Sharon. Below are sample commentaries. 
 
-- "What Will Happen At the Aqaba Summit?" 
 
Chief Editor Taher Udwan wrote in independent,    mass- 
appeal Arabic daily Al-Arab Al-Yawm (06/04): "There 
are negative and positive aspects of the road map. The 
first and most serious of those negative aspects is 
the existence of a right-wing extremist government, 
headed by Sharon, in Tel Aviv. A few weeks ago, 
Israel's prime minister said that he is not concerned 
with the Roadmap. One thing can only explain his 
presence in Aqaba today and that is, President Bush's 
strong pressures on him. One of the positive aspects 
of the summit is that the U.S. president, who sent his 
troops to occupy Iraq in the name of liberation and 
democracy is asked to put an end to the plight of the 
Palestinians." 
 
Udwan continues: "The Aqaba summit is a great and 
historic opportunity for peace that will be crowned 
with an independent Palestinian state. However, we 
should not go overboard with out hopes and 
expectations. Wagering on decisive U.S. pressures on 
Sharon needs facts rather than analyses and hopes. 
Moreover, the continued existence of Sharon and a 
Likud government will remain a continuous threat to 
the Roadmap and to empty it from its contents through 
Israeli maneuvers, hurdles, and procrastinations. 
However, we still must utilize this opportunity on a 
Palestinian and Arab level and this is what will 
happen at the Aqaba summit today." 
-- "The Road Map At the Aqaba Summit" 
 
Daily columnist Fahd Fanek wrote on the back page of 
semi-official, influential Arabic daily Al-Rai 
(06/04): "The presence of U.S. President Bush at the 
Sharm   El-Sheikh and Aqaba summits is a sign of the 
United States' commitment this time. It also shows 
U.S. willingness to exert enough pressure to accept 
the Roadmap and to start implementing it without any 
amendments - but also taking into consideration 
Israel's fears as the president's reputation is 
standing a test and he does not want to register any 
failures on the eve of the next presidential 
elections." 
 
Fanek continues: "If President Bush succeeds in 
achieving peace in the Middle East, then this will be 
a compensation for some of the negative repercussions 
of the aggression against Iraq and his success in this 
regard will serve the interests of all parties and 
will be an accomplishment that no one can deny." 
 
He adds: "Bitter experiences in the past called for 
caution. We are much more pessimistic than optimistic 
and Sharon's acceptance of the Roadmap under pressure 
may just be a mere tactic, after which Sharon will 
jump at the first opportunity to back out and render 
the plan a failure." 
 
-- "Will The Aqaba Summit Be A Turning Point?" 
 
Daily columnist Rakan Majali wrote on the back page of 
center-left, influential Arabic daily Al-Dustour 
(06/04): A"We can say that President Bush came out of 
Sharm El-Sheikh summit, carrying reassurances to the 
Palestinians and Israelis that any agreement between 
them at the Aqaba summit will receive the world's 
blessings as expressed at the Evian summit and the 
Arabs' blessings as reflected at the Sharm summit." 
 
Majali continues: "It is hoped that the Aqaba summit 
will be a turning point and, primarily, a starting 
point for the United States to regain some of its 
credibility, based on which a just and comprehensive 
peace can be built and Arab-U.S. relations can be 
improved. It is also the prelude to security and 
stability in the region." 
 
-- "The Aqaba Summit" 
 
Daily columnist Bassem Sakejha wrote on the op-ed 
page of the center-left, influential Arabic daily 
Al-Dustour (06/04): "It is clear that the United 
States' way of dealing with the Israeli party will be 
put Washington's image in the region to the test after 
its occupation of Iraq." 
 
He adds: "We are cautiously optimistic about the U.S. 
stand. Introductions do not always lead to logical 
results. The introductions these days indicate that 
George Bush does not need the Jewish vote to win in 
the next election. They voted against him in the past 
elections. He just came out of two great victories in 
Afghanistan and Iraq and he is enjoying world support 
for his Middle East plan. All this and that leads to a 
logical result, that is, pressure on Israel and 
imposing a solution in the region. But, as we have 
said, results may not always be logical." 
 
Sakejha concludes: "It remains to be said that 
selecting Aqaba as a venue for the summit has a 
special significance. Jordan is the closest to the 
Palestinian issue and its role has always been 
pivotal. So, we should expect this role to increase in 
the coming days." 
GNEHM