AMMAN, Feb 19 (IslamOnline) - The expected visit of Jordan's King Abdullah to Iran, scheduled to take place this month, has been postponed, a diplomatic source said Monday.
The source did not give any reason for the postponement but indicated that "Jordan and Iran are working to set another date for the visit," the first by a Jordanian King to Iran since the beginning of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
Earlier this month, Iran's ambassador in Jordan, Nastratullah Tajek, said that Abdullah was expected to visit Iran by the end of this month upon an invitation from Iranian President Mohammad Khatami.
Officials at the Iranian embassy confirmed the postponement but declined to give reasons for this "sudden" decision.
A Royal Court source said the visit would take place on a proper date "which will be decided by the two sides."
"We did not say that the King will go to Iran this month nor give any day for such a trip," the source told the Jordan Times.
"What we repeatedly said is that His Majesty King Abdullah will visit Iran upon an invitation from President Khatami, but the date was never fixed," the official, who asked not to be named, said.
"The visit will take place on a date which will be decided later on by the two countries," the official added.
But the Agence France Presse quoted a Jordanian official as saying that the postponement was due to the "situation in the region."
"Because of the situation in the region we have been unable to set a specific date for the visit," the official said on condition of anonymity, adding however that the trip was only postponed.
Jordan and Iran resumed diplomatic ties in the early 1990s after a 10-year break following the 1980-88 Iraq-Iran war in which Jordan sided with Baghdad and even sent volunteers to fight with the Iraqi army.
The two countries are currently discussing the partial financing of the multi-million Disi Water Project, which will offer Jordan an additional 100 million cubic meters of water annually.
