US Assistant Secretary of State for Near East Affairs William Burns departed Cairo Friday after a 24-hour visit in which he met with President Hosni Mubarak, the official MENA news agency reported.
Burns, traveling separately from the other envoy retired Marine Corp general Anthony Zinni, arrived in Jordan on Friday. He is expected in Saudi Arabia in the next leg of his tour.
Burns, who arrived in the region on Monday along with Zinni, also met with Prime Minister Atef Ebeid and top Mubarak political aide Osama Al Baz, said AFP.
Jordan's King Abdullah II was in Saudi Arabia Wednesday evening on a short visit for talks with Saudi King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz on the latest Arab and international developments, officials said.
King Abdullah also held talks with Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, who runs the country's affairs on a day-to-day basis, on bilateral issues.
During his talks with Mubarak, Burns said the ceasefire he and Zinni are attempting to broker in the Middle East conflict would be the "first step" toward the creation of a Palestinian state.
"We discussed the ways in which we can continue to work together to try to help produce a durable ceasefire between Palestinians and Israelis," he said -- Albawaba.com
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