His Majesty King Abdullah II held talks in Riyadh today with the Custodian of the Holy Mosques King Fahad Bin Abdul Aziz and Crown Prince Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz regarding the situation in Iraq and the latest developments on the Palestinian issue.

His Majesty King Abdullah II and Crown Prince Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz affirmed the support of the two countries for the Iraqi people's right of self-determination in choosing a national government that would represent the spectra of the Iraqi society in order to pave the ground for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq.

His Majesty and the Saudi Crown Prince called on the Iraqi people to preserve their national unity away from any differences. They stressed the necessity of uniting all efforts at this stage in order to build the future of Iraq based on an independent national Iraqi decision.

His Majesty and the Saudi Crown Prince asserted the importance of crystallizing a united Arab position toward the current events particularly towards the future of Iraq. The two sides emphasized their respect for the choice of the Iraqi people in charting their future.

During the meeting that was attended by the Prime Minister, Ministers of the Royal Hashemite Court and Foreign Affairs, and the Jordanian Ambassador to Riyadh, the two sides emphasized the need to have an active Arab role in dealing with the current situation.

His Majesty and the Saudi Crown Prince asserted the need to reactivate the Peace initiative of Crown Prince Abdullah in order to develop and support Arab cooperation.

His Majesty and the Saudi Crown Prince discussed the efforts exerted in order to re-launch the peace process between the Palestinians and the Israelis and the implementation of the roadmap, which has been approved by the international community. They stressed the need to accelerate formation of the new Palestinian government that would pave the ground to the establishment of a Palestinian state by the year 2005 in accordance with the roadmap.

The talks, which were attended from the Saudi side by Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz, Prince Salman Bin Abdul Aziz, Prince Saud Al Faisal, as well as several senior officials, also touched on bilateral ties between the two countries.

His Majesty also offered his sincere condolences to the Custodian of the Holy Mosques King Fahad Bin Abdul Aziz and Crown Prince Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz and members of the Saudi Royal family for the death of Prince Majid Bin Abdul Aziz.