    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book I)]
    [April 1, 1997]
    [Pages 365-368]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Prior to Discussions With King Hussein I of Jordan and an
    Exchange With Reporters
    April 1, 1997

        President Clinton. Let me say, it's always an honor to have His
    Majesty, King Hussein, back in the White House. I believe this is our
    15th meeting since I became President. I want to have the chance to
    thank him for his continuing devotion to peace, the particularly
    courageous trip he recently took to Israel. And I want to discuss with
    him what our next steps are.
        I think it's clear that we would not have gotten the agreement in
    Hebron had it not been for his leadership, and his leadership is
    essential as we go forward. So this is a difficult time for the peace
    process, and we have a lot to talk about. We also have a lot to talk
    about in terms of the relationships between the United States and
    Jordan, and I'm looking forward to that.

    Middle East Peace Process

        Q. Mr. President, I think you would agree that----
        Q. Mr. President----
        President Clinton. One at a time, one at a time.
        Q. I think that you would agree that the establishment of the--or
    attempt to establish a settlement in East Jerusalem, with soldiers and
    bulldozers, is the real cause of violence, in contradiction to the Oslo
    agreements. So what are you going to do to restore that faith, that
    confidence in the agreements?
        President Clinton. Well, that's what we're going to discuss here
    today, and we'll have a----
        Q. I mean, this is not--I think you'd agree it wasn't----
        President Clinton. As you know, I just sent Dennis Ross out to the
    region. We've just--we've had two meetings, one yesterday--an extended
    meeting yesterday and an extended meeting this morning about it. What I
    think we have to do is to restore the environment of security and of
    confidence so we can go forward with the negotiating process. And we've

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    got some ideas about it, but I want to talk to the King about it first.
        And you may be sure we're working on it. It's an urgent thing for me
    and for the whole peace process.
        Q. Mr. President, there was an incident in Gaza today, and the U.S.
    line--I don't mean that in an unfavorable way--last week was that you
    needed a clear signal from Yasser Arafat that he disapproves of
    violence, terrorism as an instrument. Did you get that clear signal?
    Because there has been no public statement.
        President Clinton. He's made several moves in the last few days
    which are encouraging in that regard. But let me say that,
    unambiguously, a precondition of going forward is a commitment to zero
    tolerance for terrorism, for making the best effort.
        All the parties have acknowledged that no one can promise that there
    will never be a violent incident, that you could control every last
    thing that every person does. But there has to be an attitude of zero
    tolerance, a determination to do all that can reasonably be done to
    maintain the peace so that then negotiated progress can be made. And
    that's what the United States expects, and that's what we will continue
    to press for.
        Q. Do you think the Palestinians have no right to defend their land?
        President Clinton. I think that the subjects that are clearly
    identified as to be negotiated in the final status should be negotiated
    in that way. And I've made that clear whether any side likes it or not.
    But I don't believe there is an excuse for terrorism in any case. I
    believe terrorism is always wrong.
        Q. Can we ask the King a question? Sir, Your Majesty, what more do
    you think the United States can do to try to get the peace process back
    on track?
        King Hussein. I think the United States has taken the lead over many
    years, and I've had the privilege of working with the President for the
    establishment of peace, not only between Jordan and Israel but a
    comprehensive peace in the region. And I hope to have the chance to
    discuss with the President what further steps all of us can take to
    achieve our goal.
        Q. Would you like to see the Secretary of State go to the region? Do
    you think that would help at this point?
        King Hussein. I suppose at some point in the future at an
    appropriate moment that, sure, the Secretary of State could probably
    visit the area, and she'd be most welcome.
        Q. [Inaudible]--to support Israel as it seeks peace? Is it time to
    ask Israel to do certain gestures or to support them or to press them to
    make issues?
        Q. Are you sending Albright to the Middle East?
        President Clinton. At the right time. I certainly want her to go,
    but I want it to be part of a clear strategy designed to produce
    progress. And I will make the decision in consultation with--obviously
    with Secretary Albright and my entire team but also with King Hussein
    and our other friends in the region. We want it to--I couldn't say it
    better than His Majesty did, that we want it to be a trip that will
    actually be part of a strategy designed to move the process forward.
        Thank you.

    [At this point, one group of reporters left the room, and another group
    entered.]

        Q. The Jordanian press would like to share with you our wishes for a
    speedy recovery.
        President Clinton. Oh, thank you so much. Well, it's just an
    unfortunate accident, but I'm making good progress.
        Let me make a statement first, if I might. I believe this is my 15th
    visit with His Majesty, King Hussein, and I welcome him back to the
    White House. I am eager to have this opportunity to discuss the peace
    process, as well as issues relating to our bilateral relations. And I
    cannot express how much I continue to admire the role he has played and
    the courage he has displayed consistently, in very personal terms,
    including after the unfortunate incident recently along the border and
    his trip to Israel.
        I do not believe we can have a comprehensive peace in the Middle
    East without the powerful influence of King Hussein. The United States
    believes that we have more to do now. We've been talking about some
    other steps we could take, and that's what I want to visit with the King
    about. So I'm looking forward to it.
        Q. Mr. President, you just mentioned the role that His Majesty has
    played, and he has invested all of his personal credibility and prestige
    to bring the parties together and rescue the peace process. But
    recently, the U.S. veto of two U.N. resolutions on settlement was seen
    by many Arab countries as a departure from longstanding policy. What are
    you, Mr. President, willing to

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    do to change that image and to help His Majesty put the peace process
    back on track without seeing any more of the violence we've seen in the
    past few weeks?
        President Clinton. Well, first of all, let me say that the vetoes
    did not evidence support in the United States for the decision for the
    building to go forward at Har Homa. And I made that clear at the time.
    We were very clear about our position on that.
        We vetoed the resolutions for two reasons. One is, we don't think
    that they're very helpful to the peace process. And second is, there
    were other--there was language in both resolutions which we believe
    prejudiced the final status negotiations against the Israelis in the
    same way that we favor--we felt that some of the actions prejudiced
    final status negotiations in their favor. We don't want to do either
    one.
        What we want to do is to see these final status issues, as
    envisioned by the Oslo agreement, actually and honestly negotiated
    without prejudice. I think that is the clear thing that I want to drive
    home here.
        And I want to discuss with His Majesty what are the next steps we
    can do. How can we create a sense of both security and confidence in the
    Middle East, that is, that the Israelis will believe there is a
    commitment on the part of the Palestinians to security and the
    Palestinians will have confidence that the Israelis will not attempt to
    prejudge the issues that should be negotiated in good faith between
    them? And we have some ideas. We'll be discussing them. And perhaps
    together we can get this peace process back on track. We'll do our best.
        Q. Mr. President, how do you envisage--[inaudible]--cooperation and
    support Jordan in your second term, please?
        President Clinton. Well, I'd like to do more. I think that Jordan
    has done as much to keep the Middle East peace process alive and moving
    forward as any nation, without much--frankly, without much assistance
    from the outside for doing it. And I believe that we should do more, and
    that's another thing I want to discuss with His Majesty, what other
    steps we can take and how we might go about getting that done. But I
    think that's something that ought to be a part of our private
    discussions until I have more to say on it.

    Iraq

        Q. Mr. President, is the Iraqi situation going to be one of the
    issues discussed with His Majesty? And what can be done to alleviate the
    Iraqi suffering, of the Iraqi people?
        President Clinton. Well, the reason we supported the U.N. Resolution
    986 is so that the oil could be sold to alleviate the suffering of the
    Iraqi people. So Saddam Hussein can use that money now to alleviate that
    suffering, and we certainly hope that he will. That's why we supported
    the United Nations resolution all along. So I think that's the first
    thing that needs to be said.
        However, from my point of view, we still see no evidence that he has
    changed his fundamental attitude toward his neighbors or his fundamental
    way of operating. And so I still believe that our position is right on
    that. But we supported 986 in the hope that the suffering of the Iraqi
    people, and especially the children, could be alleviated by that income
    coming in for that purpose.
        Q. Your Majesty, how could----
        President Clinton. Should the King answer one question? You want to
    ask him one question? One question, one question; go ahead.

    Middle East Peace Process

        Q. Your Majesty, how could Jordan and the United States of America
    work together to advance the peace process and build confidence again
    between the Arab partners and Israel?
        King Hussein. I believe that we are working together. We have worked
    together as partners and friends totally committed to the cause of
    peace, and I certainly hope this will be another opportunity for me to
    speak with the President and our friends here and to discuss what needs
    to be done beyond this point.
        Q. President Mubarak said this morning that the peace process
    reached its low point--that the peace process reached its low point in
    20 years, is what President Mubarak said this morning.
        King Hussein. Well, we are certainly passing through a difficult
    stage, but I wouldn't like to say that all the ground we have covered
    right now should be considered as nothing. I think we have covered a
    long way, and certainly conditions today are not what they were 20 years
    ago.

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    Note: The President spoke at 11:55 a.m. in the Oval Office at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to Ambassador Dennis B. Ross, Special
    Middle East Coordinator; Chairman Yasser Arafat of the Palestinian
    Authority; and President Saddam Hussein of Iraq. A reporter referred to
    President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt.