Solana holds talks in Jordan on Mideast conference

(AMMAN) - European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana arrived in Jordan on Monday for talks on preparations for a major international Middle East peace conference later this year.

Solana was having a working dinner with Jordanian Foreign Minister Abdel Ilah Khatib as part of a regional tour to prepare for the US-sponsored meeting for regional peace, an EU spokeswoman from his office told AFP.

"He is going to exchange points of view on the international meeting. We can't let the conference fail and we should work to make it succeed," she said.

The conference, which is expected in November, was called for by President George W. Bush as part of US efforts to jumpstart the dormant peace process in the wake of the takeover of Gaza by the Islamist Hamas movement in mid-June.

"His message for the region is that we have an opportunity for peace now and it should be seized by all parties and that we should be realistic and cautiously optimistic about peace in the Middle East."

Solana arrived in the Jordanian capital on a brief visit following similar talks with Israeli and Palestinian officials, ahead of a New York meeting of the Quartet of main players in the peace process -- Russia, the United Nations and the United States along with the EU.

"The EU has a role to play in the Middle East peace process," the EU spokeswoman said.

He will hold similar talks in Lebanon and Egypt on Tuesday, an EU statement said.