Jordan warns Israel of 'massive conflict' over annexation
Jordan's king warned Israel of a "massive conflict" if it proceeds with plans to annex large parts of the occupied West Bank, as European Union foreign ministers agreed to step up diplomatic efforts to try to head off such a move.
Israel has promised to annex Jewish settlements and the Jordan Valley, which could spell the end of the long-stalled peace process by making it virtually impossible to establish a viable Palestinian state.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, has moved a step closer by reaching an agreement to form a government after more than a year of political deadlock.
Jordan's King Abdulla II, in an interview published by Der Spiegel on Friday, issued a stark warning over Israel's plans.
"Leaders who advocate a one-state solution do not understand what that would mean," he said.
"What would happen if the Palestinian National Authority collapsed? There would be more chaos and extremism in the region. If Israel really annexed the West Bank in July, it would lead to a massive conflict with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan," he said.
Jordan is a close Western ally and one of only two Arab states to have signed a peace treaty with Israel. Abdullah declined to say whether annexation would threaten that agreement.
"I don't want to make threats and create an atmosphere of loggerheads, but we are considering all options. We agree with many countries in Europe and the international community that the law of strength should not apply in the Middle East," he said.
Khaled Elgindy, senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, said Israel's annexation plans could pose a threat to the Jordanian monarchy.
"When the king himself comes out and essentially puts his relationship with Israel and the treaty with Israel on the line, its very serious," he told Al Jazeera from Arlington in the United States.
"For the monarchy in Jordan, an end to the two state solution - which this plan and annexation is really aimed at achieving - an end of any prospect of a Palestinian state poses not just a strategic threat, but quite possibly even an existential threat to the monarchy in Jordan."
Jordan has been lobbying the EU to take "practical steps" to make sure annexation does not happen.
In a statement, Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman al-Safadi "stressed the need for the international community and the European Union in particular to take practical steps that reflect the rejection of any Israeli decision to annex".
At a video conference, EU foreign ministers reaffirmed their support for a two-state solution and opposition to any annexation. The ministers, whose countries are deeply divided in their approach to Israel, agreed to ramp up diplomatic efforts in the coming days with Israel, the Palestinians, the US and Arab countries.
"We reaffirm our position in support of a negotiated, two-state solution. For this to be possible, unilateral action from either side should be avoided and, for sure, international law should be upheld," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said after chairing the meeting.
"We must work to discourage any possible initiative toward annexation," Borrell told reporters in Brussels. "International law has to be upheld. Here, and there, and everywhere."
He made no mention of the use of sanctions, saying only that the EU will use "all our diplomatic capacities in order to prevent any kind of unilateral action".
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