The top U.S. military officer is to visit Israel and Jordan Sunday and Monday to reassure them of U.S. support following the resignation of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
The Pentagon says Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen will meet in Amman, Jordan with King Abdullah and other Jordanian officials on Sunday.
Later in the day, he travels to Tel Aviv, Israel, for talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres as well as the nation's military leaders.
Egypt was Israel's strongest Arab ally, and Israel's leaders worry that a change in leadership could damage that relationship.
Jordan has lately seen unrest similar to the protests that recently that drove both Mr. Mubarak and Tunisia's President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali from power. On Wednesday, King Abdullah swore in a new government that has promised to broaden public freedoms and continue political reform.
NEW: Follow our Middle East reports on Twitter
and discuss them on our Facebook page. |