Mideast situation – SecGen’s Mideast visit (Jordan) – Press release

SECRETARY-GENERAL CONTINUES VISIT TO JORDAN

(Received from the Spokesman for the Secretary-General.)

AMMAN, 11 June — Secretary-General. Javier Perez de Cuellar, on the second day of his visit to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, had talks today with Jordanian leaders before visiting areas of north-west Jordan as well as a Palestinian refugee camp run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Rear East (UNRWA).

The Secretary-General began the morning with an early meeting with Crown Prince Hassan, for a discussion, lasting close to one hour, of specific problems related to the Middle East region. The Secretary-General then met for an hour with Prime Minister Ahmad Obeidat and Foreign Minister Taher al Masri. Again the possibility of new approaches to initiate a Middle East negotiating process were discussed.

The Secretary-General then few by helicopter to north-west Jordan, with stops at Um Qais, Mokhaibeh and Dair Alla, where he was briefed by Crown Prince Hassan and Foreign Minister al Masri on the Jordanian Government's development plans for the Yarmouk and Jordan rivers.

The Secretary-General then drove in the early afternoon to the Baqa'a Palestinian refugee camp, which is run by UNRWA. The camp was established in February 1968 as a tented camp to accommodate refugees and displaced persons whe had abandoned their camps in the Jordan valley following military operations. It is located some 15 miles north of Amman, and accommodates officially over 60,000 refugees and displaced persons. The Secretary-General toured the school run by UNRWA in the camp, met some of the teachers and pupils and also visited the shelter of a Palestinian family.

Later this afternoon, the Secretary-General will be received in audience by King Hussein of Jordan, for talks, which will be followed by a dinner given by King Hussein in honour of the Secretary-General.

The Secretary-General is scheduled to leave early Tuesday morning for Tel Aviv, his last stop on his current Middle East tour.

* *** *