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Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - King Abdullah II returned home on Saturday after a brief visit to Cairo where he held talks with Egypt's interim president Adli Mansour on ways of cementing Jordanian-Egyptian ties and political developments in Egypt and the region.

King Abdullah's official visit is the first for an Arab head of state since the Egyptian military ousted president Mursi following massive protests on the eve of his first year anniversary on June 30.

The King also met with Minister of Defense General Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, and Egypt's vice-president for foreign relations Mohamed ElBaradei.

Egyptian Prime Minister Hazem Bablawi received King Abdullah and his accompanying delegation at Cairo International Airport on Saturday.

During the talks, held at Ittihadiyah Palace, the King and the interim leader agreed to step up efforts to bolster political and economic ties "to fulfill the common interests of the two people", calling for a meeting of the joint Jordanian-Egyptian Higher Committee "as speedily as possible".

His Majesty said Jordan would support the choice of Egyptians and help the country to overcome the current circumstances and enhance its security and stability, calling on all Egyptian political forces to maintain national accord and reconciliation in the next phase "in a way to boost Egypt's strength, status and key role in the Arab world and the region".

King Abdullah and Mansour also talked about the situation in the region, particularly efforts underway to revive Palestinian-Israeli peace talks based on the two-state solution. The King said Jordan is pushing for resumption of serious negotiations to address all final status issues and lead to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on national Palestinian soil with East Jerusalem as its capital.

He said a peace deal should bring security and stability to regional countries and peoples.

In this context, the King and the interim Egyptian leader praised as "a positive development" US Secretary of State John Kerry's announcement in Amman last night that Palestinians and Israelis had agreed to restart talks, "which constituted the groundwork for launching peace negotiations soon".

The Cairo talks, attended by senior officials on both sides, also tackled Syria where the King stressed the need for a comprehensive solution to the Syrian crisis to end the escalating suffering of Syrian people and safeguard the country's unity.

King Abdullah and Mansour agreed to continue coordination on various Arab and regional issues to face various challenges, and the King stressed Cairo's important role in that regard.

The meeting was attended on the Jordanian side by Royal Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh, foreign minister Nasser Judeh, the King's adviser Abdullah Wreikat, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Meshal Al Zabin, Director of the Intelligence Department Lt. Gen., Faisal Shoubaki and the Kingdom's ambassador to Egypt Bishr Khasawneh.

Top Egyptian officials also attended the talks, including vice-president for foreign relations Mohamed ElBaradei, Prime Minister Hazem el-Biblawi, armed forces chief General Abdul Fattah Sisi, foreign minister Nabil Fahmi, the country's intelligence chief and the president's adviser, Petra reported.