King: The Most Dangerous Illusion Is the Belief That Arab States Have Never Sought Peace

Al-Taj News – His Majesty King Abdullah II affirmed that Arab states have sought to achieve peace, noting that the Arab Peace Initiative offered Israel normalization in exchange for peace and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

In an address before the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, His Majesty said that one of the most dangerous illusions is the belief that Arab states have never sought peace.

The King noted that the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative offered Israel the normalization of relations with 57 Arab and Muslim countries, including Iran and Iraq at the time, in exchange for peace and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

He added that the offer remained on the table for more than 20 years, affirming that “the obstacle was never the absence of a partner for achieving peace, but the absence of an Israeli government willing to accept it.”

His Majesty said that another illusion is the belief that the Israeli leadership’s rejection of a Palestinian state is a position that can change, adding: “It will not change, but is being entrenched on the ground.”

He pointed to the Israeli government’s acceleration of settlement construction and land confiscation, noting that these measures did not begin recently, and that the map has been changing since the Oslo Accords “little by little, one settlement after another.”