
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, July 16, 1994                   TAG: 9407180147
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: The Washington Post
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

RIVALS TO TALK IN U.S.

WASHINGTON - Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Jordan's King Hussein, whose countries have been enemies since 1948, will meet at the White House on July 25 to seek an end to their conflict, President Clinton announced Friday.

The two are not ready to sign a formal peace treaty, but their first public meeting will bring them to the verge of that point, removing another link from the chain of Arab hostility that has encircled the Jewish state since its creation, administration officials said.

``This is a change on the ground, a very substantial change,'' Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said. ``It is the beginning of a new era, a new period, in relations between us and Jordan and in the whole Middle East.''

The announcement was more subdued in Jordan, which has long resisted following the example of Egypt and making peace with Israel.

``The meeting is only an important step on the long and difficult road to achieving the peace which future generations can accept,'' Crown Prince Hassan told state television, according to Reuters news agency. ``Jordan has accepted the invitation, which is linked directly to comprehensive peace,'' Hassan said.

The famously cautious Hussein, who has survived four decades on a perilous throne by avoiding high-profile risks, has met privately many times with senior Israeli officials. He signaled during a Washington visit last month that he was at last ready to drop the veil and meet publicly to construct a de facto peace agreement. By agreeing now to do so at the White House, he has given Clinton a welcome respite from the foreign policy pratfalls that have beset the administration.

U.S. officials portrayed Hussein's commitment to a highly visible meeting with Rabin as a psychological breakthrough that strongly indicates an end is coming soon to the 46-year technical state of war between Israel and Jordan. But Hussein has not yet committed to anything that would open the border or commence trade, and it is not clear whether the summit, or preliminary meetings to be held in Jordan next week, will produce substantive agreements.

``On behalf of all Americans, I salute their commitment to peace,'' Clinton said of Rabin and Hussein. ``This historic meeting is another step forward toward achievement of a comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East.''

Memo: lede

by CNB