US special envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell is scheduled to arrive late Saturday in Riyadh as part of his “listening tour” of the Middle East. King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and Mitchell are expected to discuss ways to consolidate the ceasefire in Gaza and accelerate the Arab peace initiative. Mitchell is expected to convey to the King a message from President Barack Obama stressing the keenness of his administration to reactivate the dormant peace process. John Moran, US embassy press attaché in Riyadh, said one of the main objectives of Mitchell's Middle East tour, which Obama has said was to listen to both sides of the conflict a fair hearing and not dictate terms as in past administrations, is to meet with King Abdullah. President Obama had in a recent interview with Al-Arabiya television stressed the importance of the Arab peace initiative initiated by King Abdullah during the 2002 Arab Summit in Beirut. Mitchell is also scheduled to hold talks with Prince Saud Al-Faisal, Foreign Minister, on Obama administration's vision to consolidate the Gaza ceasefire and resume Palestinian-Israeli talks. Mitchell is expected to present a report on his tour findings to Obama next Tuesday in Washington. US sources expect Mitchell to make another visit to the region next month to follow up on his “listening tour” talks. During the tour, which started last Monday, Mitchell has held talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, the Israeli leadership in Tel Aviv, President Mahmoud Abass in Ramallah and King Abdullah II in Jordan.
