KING'S SLAP AT PA STIRS CONTROVERSY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 006545

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/04/2014
TAGS: PGOV KPAL IS JO
SUBJECT: KING'S SLAP AT PA STIRS CONTROVERSY

REF: FBIS GMP20040803000243

Classified By: CDA David Hale for reasons 1.5 (b)(d)


1. (C) Summary. King Abdullah's comments about the stymied
peace process during a prime-time interview with al-Arabiya
has sparked controversy, prompting Palestinian officials to
seek "clarification" from Amman. The King reiterated the
importance of the roadmap. In response to a suggestion that
Jordan was not sufficiently supportive of the Palestinians,
the King expressed frustration at the Palestinian
leadership's shifting demands, noting the difficulty this
causes outsiders -- including Jordan -- in trying to assist
their cause. The King's press adviser says the King's
comments were misconstrued by certain press outlets as a
rebuke to the PA for making too many concessions; in fact, he
was criticizing a failure by Palestinian leaders to accept
reasonable offers at the time they are acceptable to others.
End Summary.

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KING EXPRESSES FRUSTRATION WITH PALESTINIAN LEADERS
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2. (U) During a 30-minute interview with al-Arabiya on
August 3 (see reftel for full transcript),King Abdullah
called on Palestinians and Israelis to implement their
commitments outlined in the roadmap as a way out of the
stymied peace process. In response to a question about the
King's reported call for Arafat to consider stepping aside,
the King said that only the Palestinian people can choose
their leadership, adding that the onus is on the Palestinian
leaders to "correct some of the mistakes which the world
takes as justification for blaming the Palestinian side." He
called on Palestinian leaders to articulate a "clear
vision... (and present the PA as an institution) that the
whole world can deal with as a real partner for achieving the
final settlement (based on) land for peace." He said Jordan
will insist on a role in determining the final solution of
refugees, and will not "replace Israeli tanks with Jordanian
tanks" in the West Bank.


3. (U) Asked about accusations that Jordan seeks to
interfere in Palestinian affairs, the King replied (in a near
exasperated tone) that Jordan "has been subjected since the
reign of King Abdullah I ... to an unfair campaign of
accusations, and skepticism of the Jordanian role towards the
Palestinian cause. If Jordan tried to speak about this
cause, or attempted to offer assistance, Jordan is said to
interfere...or that it has avid interest in the West Bank.
Now if Jordan were not to do that, it is said that it is
giving up providing assistance to its Palestinian brethren."


4. (U) Queried about Palestinian complaints that they have
been abandoned by the world, he responded: "First the
Palestinian people must tell us how they want us to help them
and with what. At the beginning, the talk was about the
return of 98 percent of the occupied Palestinian territory,
then it was changed to a talk of less than 50 percent of
these territories. We do not know in a year or two years,
what percentage the talk will be about. As for the refugee
issue, talk was on their return and compensation, however, we
find now that the talk is concerning the return of a small
percentage of them." The King's frustration was clear as he
added: "We wish the Palestinian leadership would determine
for us...what it wants, and not to surprise us every now and
then with decisions and acceptance of issues it has rejected
in the past."

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KING'S COMMENTS DRAW FIRE FROM SOME QUARTERS
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5. (U) Press reports of King Abdullah's comments prompted
harsh reaction from Palestinian quarters, including the
Palestinian prime minister and the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.
Ahmad Qur'eia told reporters he would dispatch a high-level
delegation to Amman to discuss "the reality" of the situation
and clarify Jordan's position. Foreign Minister Muasher
subsequently talked with Qur'eia to smooth over any
misunderstandings. Terming King Abdullah's comments as
"strange," a masked Brigades member said in a video broadcast
by al-Arabiya: "The kings and leaders of Arabs should have
prevented Sharon the butcher from committing massacres
against our people...tore down the segregation wall, and
supported our people in their struggle....they should have
taken a position that would force the world to (recognize)
the right to return and self-determination."


6. (C) Some contacts were angry because they believe it is
inappropriate for the King -- or any other Arab leader -- to
criticize the Palestinian leadership given the current dire
political situation. However, Jordanian officials say that
that the King's remarks were consistent with long-standing
Jordanian policy and that some press outlets misrepresented
his statements. The head of the King's media office told IO
that al-Arabiya (followed by UPI and others) took the King
out of context by using only a part of the interview (his
comments about "concessions") in its news bulletins before
airing the complete interview. She said the King's party was
already on the plane en route to Amman when this was going on
and was unable to fix the problem while they were in the air.


7. (C) Political Science professor at Yarmouk University
Mohammad al-Momani said he was surprised by the negative
reaction because he viewed the full interview and did not
find it as "aggressive" as the press portrayed it. He said
he finds it "interesting" that people so readily attack
anyone that criticizes the PA leadership. "They are not
saints, after all," he told PolOff. Director of the World
Affairs Council in Jordan Fakhri Abu Shakra considered the
King's statements balanced, but it was clear King Abdullah
was speaking out of "bitterness" and "disappointment" over
the spiraling chaos in the West Bank and Gaza. He speculated
to PolOff that a recent interview Arafat gave to an Israeli
paper recently suggesting his willingness to compromise
further may have also prompted the King's frustration about
the Palestinians' "shifting" positions.
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COMMENT
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8. (C) Many press outlets got the story wrong. The King is
criticizing the Palestinian leadership for rejecting
pragmatic, implementable positions at the appropriate time,
only to later decide that those positions were, after all,
wise and acceptable. The King's comments harken back to the
old adage first voiced by Abba Ebban that the Palestinians
"never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity." The
King's allusion to his great-grandfather is seen by some here
as a punctuation mark on that criticism, as King Abdullah I
was assassinated by a Palestinian for advocating positions
that were subsequently -- but too late to be effective --
embraced by future Palestinian leaders.

Visit Embassy Amman's classified website at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman/
or access the site through the State Department's SIPRNET
home page.
HALE