Germany's Merkel criticises Netanyahu plan to annex Jordan Valley

German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday criticised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's announcement last week that he intended to annex the Jordan valley in the occupied West Bank, saying it hurt efforts to negotiate a peace deal.

"The German government backs an internationally negotiated peace solution in the sense of a two state solution ... annexations are always detrimental to peace solutions. They do not help and therefore we do not agree," said Merkel at a news conference with Jordan's King Abdullah.
The plan announced by Netanyahu, who faces a closely fought election on Tuesday, was "a disaster for any attempt to push two-state solution forward", said King Abdullah.

Abdullah said he was "extremely concerned" about the annexation plans, adding that they are no precondition for a solution at the negotiating table and would directly affect Israel's relations with Jordan and Egypt.

The two countries are the only Arab nations to have peace treaties with neighbouring Israel.