On 25 September 1984, Egypt and Jordan renewed diplomatic ties which were severed after the signing of the Israel-Egypt peace treaty in March 1979. Perhaps in an attempt to justify this more in the eyes of more radical Arab states, King Hussein on 1 October, delivered a particularly vicious attack on the new Israeli government, setting certain demands for any peace negotiations. Among them total Israeli withdrawal from all the territories. In the following statement Mr. Peres responded to the Jordanian monarch's attack and rejected his preconditions for negotiations. Text:
"It is unthinkable that a condition for peace negotiations should be the acceptance of Hussein's demands, even before the negotiations themselves have begun.
It is true that about 17 years have passed since Jordan attacked Israel on the mistaken premise that it could defeat Israel. No one gets any prize for making mistakes, and no compensation is paid for aggression. Peace is not a matter of doing favors; either peace is needed by both sides, or else it cannot be realized.
Anyone who rejects the peace will have to pay the price of his rejection. King Hussein's position - that the people of Israel and its elected government are not to his liking - is ridiculous. In a democratic regime, the people choose the government, and not vice-versa.
Despite this response by King Hussein, Israel will continue to believe in peace, to profess peace, and to propose negotiations - not as a stratagem, but as a real and serious need of all peoples living in the Middle East."