AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Wednesday met with a delegation from the Board of Trustees of the World Affairs Council (WAC) with whom he discussed local issues and developments in the regional and international affairs.

 

The delegates included Chairman of the Board of Trustees Taher Al Masri, Abdel Salam Majali, Fayez Tarawneh, Adnan Badran, Marouf Bakhit, and Abdullah Nsour (all former prime ministers), in addition to former senior officials Sharif Fawaz Sharaf, Adnan Abu Odeh, Kamel Abu Jaber, Saeed Tal, Hamdi Tabbaa and Aqel Biltaji.

 

The meeting, which took place at Al Husseiniya Palace on Wednesday, touched on a host of challenges facing the Kingdom and ways to deal with them, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

 

His Majesty stressed that Jordan has experienced uphill fights but has always proved capable of overcoming difficulties and challenges.

 

His Majesty also stressed that stimulating the economy, creating job opportunities for Jordanians and improving the level of services provided to them remain a top priority.

 

The King pointed out that he had directed the government to communicate with citizens and follow up on their needs, so that people would always be encouraged to use all channels of communication with officials.

 

On regional developments, His Majesty reiterated the centrality of the Palestinian issue, stressing that the two-state solution that leads to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on pre-1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital, is the only way to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

 

Commenting on the idea of confederation with the Palestinians, the King pointed out that this issue resurfaces from time to time, remarking: “As I said before, confederation with whom?”

 

King Abdullah said that he will be travelling soon to New York to attend the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly, where he will be meeting with world leaders on the sidelines to discuss the Palestinian issue, ways to support the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) and the Syrian refugee crisis.

 

On the latest developments in the Syrian crisis, His Majesty pointed out that the situation in southern Syria is moving toward stability. He also stressed the importance of up scaling efforts to find a political solution to the Syrian crisis that preserves the unity and stability of Syria and fulfils the aspirations of the Syrian people to live in their homeland in peace and security.

 

For their part, the WAC delegation members expressed appreciation of His Majesty’s role and great efforts in defending the Palestinian cause and Jerusalem in various international forums, noting that the Palestinian issue is always at the forefront of the Jordanian political and diplomatic efforts led by His Majesty.

 

In this context, they underlined the importance of the Hashemite custodianship over Muslim and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, as well as preserving the Holy City’s identity and supporting the steadfastness of its people.

 

Affirming their confidence in Jordan’s ability to deal with regional crises, they stressed that having a strong internal front is important to address challenges facing the Kingdom, pointing out that His Majesty has established Jordan as a role model state of moderation.

 

During the meeting, they reviewed the role of the WAC in spreading political awareness about issues of concern to the Jordanians.

 

Royal Hashemite Court Chief Yousef Issawi and Adviser to His Majesty and Director of the Office of His Majesty Manar Dabbas attended the meeting.