The Egyptian-Jordanian summit held in Cairo Sunday 1/11/2009 between President Hosni Mubarak and King Abdullah II of Jordan stressed the need for eliminating the obstacles hindering the peace process.

Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul-Gheit told a press conference with his Jordanian counterpart Nasser Gouda that the summit talks focused on the situation in the region, most particularly the Palestinian issue.

The two leaders' talks are part of continued consultations between the two sisterly Arab countries over the regional conditions and the peace process and the obstructions it is facing, Abul-Gheit said.

Egypt has received a report on the outcomes of recent consultations between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and US State Secretary Hillary Clinton, Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul-Gheit said, adding that he believes Jordan has received a similar report.

Peace efforts are facing a real problem stemming from Israel's failure to commit to the roadmap, which stipulates a complete halt to settlement activities, he said.

It is not logic to say we can go ahead with the peace negotiations while Israel continues settlement activities, especially in Al-Quds (East Jerusalem), he added.

Egypt hopes the Palestinian side will receive guarantees in light of US President Barack Obama's address to the UN General Assembly, regarding settlement activities, peace efforts and withdrawal from the occupied lands.

For his part, Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Jouda said the Mubarak-Abdullah meeting comes as part of continued political consultations between the two leaders on regional and international efforts to launch direct negotiations leading to materialising the two-state solution.

Jouda said he totally agrees with Abul-Gheit that the current regional conditions are difficult, adding no one can shoulder the blame in the future for wasting an opportunity to make peace efforts a success.

The Jordanian official has rejected Israel's unilateral measures, especially in East Jerusalem, including continued settlement construction, excavations and evictions. As for the guarantees that Arabs require, Abul-Gheit said the US should declare its commitment to implementing its address before the UN General Assembly. A time frame should be set for the negotiations because there are persistent attempts to waste time, he said. Israel should adhere to a specific time frame to reach tangible results, he added.

In response to US State Secretary Hillary Clinton's demands to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of resuming negotiations with Israel without conditions, Abul-Gheit said we don't expect continuing negotiations while Israel is going on with building settlements.

If the Palestinian side accepts negotiating with Israel without conditions, it will be tantamount to giving up East Jerusalem to them as Abbas has said, he added. The US needs to exert more efforts with the Israelis, he added.

Abul-Gheit said a proposal was presented during the UN General Assembly meeting, in which the US is required to give written guarantees to the Palestinians to restart negotiations with Israel. The proposal was well received by many, he noted, adding that the US should be the one making such proposal.

Egypt should submit a report on its efforts on achieving inter-Palestinian reconciliation, he said.

Egypt supports Palestinian calls to hold an urgent meeting of the Arab follow-up committee and Arab foreign ministers to look into these developments in general.

It is no use to say that US efforts are not serious but they are not enough to press Israel to respond to requirements of returning back to the negotiation table.

Asked whether Syrian President Bashar al-Assad would visit Egypt soon, Abul-Gheit only said he does not know.