Defense Secretary Frank Carlucci met Jordan's King Hussein on Saturday for talks on Middle East peace prospects and military cooperation, a palace official said.
He said they continued their talks during a lunch hosted by the king and attended by senior military and civilian officials from both sides.The talks concentrated on efforts to settle the Iran-Iraq war, the official news agency Petra reported. It said the king stressed the need for a just and durable solution, including a non-aggression and non-interference pact.
Iran and Iraq will meet in Geneva on Monday to resume U.N.-mediated talks about a permanent settlement. Jordan supported Iraq throughout the eight-year war.
The U.S.-Jordan talks, attended by senior officials, also focused on prospects for ending the Arab-Israeli conflict and military cooperation, a palace source said.
Carlucci, accompanied by his wife Marsha, arrived on Friday to start a weeklong trip that will also take him to Egypt and Israel.
Earlier on Saturday he and the Jordanian armed forces commander, Field Marshal Sharif Zeid Bin Shaker, attended the opening session of a joint U.S.-Jordan military commission.
They then flew by helicopter to the northern city of Um Qais, near the border with the Israeli-held Syrian Golan Heights, before returning to lunch with the king.