US President George W. Bush, hoping to move his Middle East peace plan forward, will hold a joint summit with the Israeli and Palestinian leaders in Jordan next week, the White House announced today.
In a swirl of diplomacy to be held after attending a Group of Eight summit in France, Mr Bush will also meet Arab leaders in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt.
"We're focused on making progress in the road map," White House spokesman Mr Scott McClellan said, referring to the US-backed Middle East initiative envisioning a Palestinian state as early as 2005.
Mr Bush will also visit US forces in Doha, Qatar.
After leaving Evian, France, Mr Bush will travel to the Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheikh in Egypt to meet Arab leaders on June 3rd. Mr McClellan did not say which ones, but leaders of Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia were expected.
From there, Mr Bush will travel to Jordan for a June 4th summit with Mr Sharon and Mr Abbas, in the wake of the Israeli cabinet's decision on Sunday to reluctantly accept the road map.
Mr McClellan said that meeting would be held "conditions permitting," but that "we fully expect the meeting to take place at this time."
It will be Mr Bush's most high-profile intervention in Middle East peacemaking and his first face-to-face meeting with Mr Abbas, who took power a month ago.
Before returning to Washington, Mr Bush will go to Doha, Qatar, in the Gulf to visit the headquarters of US-led military forces in Iraq.
Bush leaves Friday on the trip that will also take him to Poland and Russia.