King Abdullah II of Jordan has postponed a scheduled a meeting with US President George W. Bush in the White House, the White House announced Monday.

Speaking to reporters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, spokeswoman Claire Buchan said the meeting, slated for Wednesday, has been rescheduled to the first week of May. She did not explain why the meeting has been delayed.

Sean McCormack, spokesman for US National Security Council, was quoted by agencies reports as saying on Monday that the king decided that he would remain in Jordan "because of development in the region."

"We have agreed to reschedule," McCormack said.

President Bush met Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in the White House on Wednesday and strongly endorsed his controversial disengagement plan.

In an exchange of letters with Sharon, Bush gave tacit approval for Israel's future annexation of large chunks of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and embraced Israeli rejection of any"right of return" for the Palestinian refugees.

Source: Xinhua