After years of severed relations Hamas and Jordanian officials are meeting in Amman. Oula Farawati assesses the motives behind the sudden move Top Hamas officials and General Intelligence Department Director Mohamed Dahabai met in Amman to discuss "pending" security issues. Most political analysts, though, believe the agenda of the meetings went beyond logistical security issues to embrace a new era of political relations in the Middle East. "Jordan is the Arab world's great survivor. When it starts shuffling its diplomatic cards it means something is going on that's worth watching... This is not a purely bilateral or local matter. It suggests that both sides are looking out for their own best interests and are making preliminary moves to adjust to changing circumstances," political analyst Rami Khouri wrote in the Daily Star newspaper. Relations between Hamas and Amman have been tense for a decade. Jordan expelled senior Hamas officials in 1999 and two years later accused the movement of planning attacks inside the country. Jordanian officials, wary of the Iranian influence in the region, viewed both Hamas and Hizbullah as a threat to Jordanian security, especially in the event of a US or Israeli attack against Iran. Jordanian analysts believe both sides stand to benefit from the thaw in relations. Politically-savvy Jordan, argues analyst Mohamed Abu Rumman, is seeking to restore relations with Hamas after watching Fatah and the Palestinian Authority fail to either progress either internally or on the peace track. Regarding the latter, he says Hamas has proved to be "a tough number in a complicated formula". In reinstating relations with Jordan Hamas has a number of goals. It may hope to reap some benefit from Amman's good relations with Tel Aviv as well as win public support in Jordan while at the same time protecting pro- Hamas Islamists. "Hamas has identified a potential political haven in Jordan, away from the pressures Hamas faces in other Arab countries," Abu Rumman told Al-Ahram Weekly. Hamas politburo member Mohamed Nazzal said in an interview with the London-based Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that his meetings with Jordanian officials were supposed to "lay the foundations for new relations between the Jordanian government and the Hamas movement". "We discussed political and security issues and ways of strengthening bilateral relations, not on the basis of conditions but in terms of mutual benefit." Nazzal, who was expelled from Jordan in 1999, denies that the movement is looking for a safe haven in Amman now that Damascus, Hamas's current ally, and Tel Aviv are discussing a possible peace accord. "We are not looking for havens. We are looking for accord with all Arab and Islamic parties, particularly Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. These countries neighbour Israel and relations with them are of a strategic nature. We are looking for accords and points of agreements not a haven... we believe any Syrian-Israeli agreement remains a long way away." Fatah, Israel and the US are said to be irked by the sudden thaws. Fatah, which recently closed its offices in Yemen in protest against Hamas's representation there, is rumoured to be particularly concerned by Amman's sudden change of course. Jordanian policy, which till now has focussed on supporting President Mahmoud Abbas and following US interests in the region, has, argues Khouri, proved futile in the light of Hamas's -- and the Islamists -- growing influence. "Resuming normal ties with Hamas is a dramatic change of policy but riding out the drama to preserve Jordan's security and stability seems preferable to a failed strategy of siding with Israel and the US against strong and growing Islamist forces in the region." Nazzal revealed that Fatah-Amman relations were also on the agenda of the meeting. While Jordanian government spokesman Nasser Judeh downplayed the discussions as an attempt to "solve pending security issues" Nazzal insisted all political files were discussed. "[We discussed] Hamas's relations with the Palestinian presidency and the Fatah movement. We explained our view that intransigence comes from the other party, that there is a US veto which President Abbas appears to be unable to bypass with the result that all attempts at rapprochement, dialogue or reconciliation come up against a brick wall." So, is Jordan seeking to join mediation efforts between Hamas and Fatah? Such suggestions, says Nazzal, are baseless. "We are not looking for a substitute to Egypt. Egypt remains the mediator but other parties have contacted Hamas and asked to intercede. We always said that the issue needs the agreement of all concerned parties. We also said that we will not stand in the way of any party that wants to exert efforts to help release POWs. The field is open but we are not looking for a mediator other than Egypt." Abu Rumman said he was hopeful Amman's meeting with Hamas will move beyond reconciliation towards drawing a framework of political understanding in the interest of both parties. "Relations between the two have to be handled in a realistic manner. That means mending fences to help both Hamas and Jordan reach common ground."
