WASHINGTON -- President Clinton paid tribute to King Hussein of Jordan Sunday, praising him as a "partner and friend" before leading a funeral delegation that included three former presidents.
"He was a magnificent man, and like so many, I loved and admired him," Clinton said on the White House lawn before his departure for Amman, Jordan.Clinton promised support for Hussein's son and successor, the new King Abdullah, and the administration was moving quickly to shore up support for Jordan, which under Hussein has been a voice of moderation and usually an ally to the United States.
The president on Saturday announced plans to give Jordan, a poor and economically struggling country, an additional $300 million in aid over three years. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said Sunday on ABC's "This Week" that this would be on top of the $225 million in aid Jordan now receives, "plus other substantial amounts of assistance in order to make sure that the Jordanian economy flourishes."
Accompanying Clinton to Jordan were former Presidents Bush, Carter and Ford. First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, attending a U.N. conference in the Hague, Netherlands, was to meet Clinton in Jordan for the funeral.
Also in the delegation were a House delegation of International Relations Committee Chairman Ben Gilman, R-N.Y. and Democratic Whip David Bonior, Mich., and Sens. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, and Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, World Bank President James Wolfensohn, and Najeeb and Doris Halaby, the parents of Hussein's widow, Queen Noor, were also traveling with the president.
Clinton, in his statement, recalled how Hussein, stricken with cancer, joined the Wye Conference last October to help Israelis and Palestinians resolve differences and set a path toward peace.
"Though frail with fighting for his own life, he gave life to the process many felt was failing. The smallest man in the room that day was the largest. The frailest was the strongest," Clinton said.
Tributes also came in from other U.S. leaders: Defense Secretary William Cohen called Hussein a "soldier of peace." President Bush said that while they differed over the war against Iraq in 1991, Hussein was a loyal ally for the United States "and a visionary advocate of Middle East peace."
Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., said the king's "bold leadership and personal courage serve as a model for all of us." House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., also noted Hussein's contribution to the Wye negotiations, saying that was "his final gift of peace to the people of the Middle East."
Before departing for the Middle East, Clinton also talked briefly by phone with King Abdullah, 37, who served in the Jordanian military before his accession to the throne.
Albright said she also met with Abdullah late last month and was assured by his statement that he was "going to carry my father's flag" and continue Jordan's pro-U.S., pro-peace policies.
"He clearly feels an affinity toward the United States and will work with us. We are going to work with him very carefully," Albright said of the new king, who received his education in the United States and Britain.