Thu Jan 8, 5:46 AM ET
AMMAN (AFP) - Jordan's King Abdullah II has reaffirmed that any plans to set up a Jordanian-Palestinian confederacy must wait until after the establishement of an independent Palestinian state.
"There could be no discussions on this issue until after the creation of an independent Palestinian state and after the Jordanian and Palestinian people decide their desire for setting up such a confederacy," he said reaffirming Jordan's long-standing position.
"If our Palestinian brothers wish to have relations with Jordan in the future, it will be examined then," the king said Thursday.
He spoke Wednesday at a meeting with officers from 14 Arab and other countries who were taking part in a training course at the Royal Jordanian National Defence College.
The monarch also reiterated that Jordan "will never be a substitute country for anyone", dismissing suggestions that have been made frequently by far-right Israeli officials for Jordan to serve as a homeland for Palestinians.
King Abdullah insisted that Jordan's current efforts focused on "developing the economic and social situation and improving living conditions for its citizens."
According to official estimates, around 40 percent of Jordan's population of more than five million people are of Palestinian origin.
In 1988, King Abdullah's father, the late King Hussein, severed administrative relations with the West Bank, which had been under the jurisdiction of the Hashemite kingdom since 1950.
"We are working to support the Palestinian government of (prime minister) Ahmed Qorei because we realise that when the Palestinian government will be strong it will be able to negotiate (with Israel) from a position of strength," the king said.