Syria said today it has asked for a postponement of the Arab summit conference scheduled for November 25 and accused Jordan’s King Hussein of preparing to join the Camp David peace process.
State-run Damascus radio broadcast the text of a note sent by Syrian Vice Premier and Foreign Minister Abdel Halim Khaddam to Arab League Secretary General Chadli Kleibi proposing the Amman, Jordan summit be postponed and asking that the Syrian request be circulated to all League members.
Alluding to the 52-day-old Iran-Iraq war, Khaddam’s note cited the ‘numerous deep conflicts and divisions’ which currently plague the Arab world.
‘In view of this state of affairs, I do not believe that the conditions which I have outlined are conducive to holding a conference…’ Khaddam said in his note.
The Syrian foreign minister asked that the conference be delayed until a more appropriate time.
There was no immediate reaction from Jordan’s King Hussein, who will be hosting the summit. However, Jordan’s foreign minister said Tuesday that all preparations for holding the conference in Amman Nov. 25 had been completed.
The Syrian request for a postponement of the summit was accompanied by a propaganda attack on the Jordanian regime. The state-run Syrian newspaper, Al-Baath, said ‘the Jordanian regime stands ready to continue the process of Camp David and bring about the liquidation (of the Arab cause).’