No matter what emerges from the first direct peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians in 16 months, no one can say that Jordan has not tried its best to bring the two sides together.

Hosting the negotiations in Amman and in the company of Quartet representatives as well as Jordanian officials including Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh is a big feat for His Majesty King Abdullah’s own diplomacy and deep involvement in the continued search for a just and durable peace between Israel and the Palestinians on the basis of the two-state solution living side-by-side in peace and harmony.

The King’s unwavering commitment to the creation of an independent Palestinian state on the basis of the June 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital is a cardinal principle of Jordan’s policy on the Palestinian issue.

It took many initiatives by the Monarch to convince the two sides to come to Amman and negotiate in earnest about a final solution, including his visit to Ramallah last year for talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the follow-up trip that Judeh took to the West Bank for talks with Palestinian officials.

The King’s talks with Israeli President Shimon Peres last November may have sealed the agreement to give Jordan a chance to breathe new life into the stalled peace talks between the two sides.

Now it is up to Israel and the Palestinians to seize this rare opportunity and make peace for all time instead of drifting into the abyss.

All sides know what the Palestinians want and their terms for a permanent solution. It is now Israel’s turn to spell out its position on all final status issues including borders, East Jerusalem and the return of the Palestinian refugees. As long as Israel keeps foot-dragging on the final status talks, no amount of outside pressure will be able to achieve peace, not only for Israel and the Palestinians, but also for the rest of the Middle East and beyond.