Press release on Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s talks with Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ayman Al Safadi

On July 4, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held talks with Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan Ayman Al Safadi who is paying a brief working visit to Moscow.

The foreign ministers held a detailed exchange of views on the situation in the Middle East and North Africa in the context of challenges and threats to regional and international security emanating from the persisting potential for conflict in this vast area.

The officials concentrated on developments in Syria. Mr Lavrov and Mr Safadi reaffirmed their consistent support for Syrian sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity and lack of alternative to a political settlement based on UN Security Council Resolution 2254. The officials highly assessed the cooperation between the two countries – in the bilateral and Astana formats, as well as within the trilateral monitoring centre in Amman (with the participation of the United States) for the final rout of the terrorists in Syria. They also emphasised the need to address humanitarian issues, in particular, those connected with the stay of hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees on the territory of Jordan.

Discussing the Middle East peace process, the officials reaffirmed their commitment to a two-state solution to the Palestinian issue based on universally recognised international legal norms, including the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council and General Assembly and the Arab Peace Initiative. They emphasised the need for resuming the negotiations between the Palestinians and the Israelis as soon as possible. The officials also expressed a common opinion on the need to substantially improve the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and restore Palestinian national unity based on the PLO political platform.

Regarding Iraq, the ministers welcomed the measures taken by its leadership to fully restore control over territories liberated from ISIS. At the same time they stated the need to achieve intra-Iraqi accord through a dialogue involving all political forces and ethnic and religious groups. In this context they noted the importance of forming a new, inclusive government in Iraq as soon as possible based on the results of the May 12 universal parliamentary elections.

During the meeting the officials also discussed important issues of improving Russian-Jordanian relations with an emphasis on holding a regular meeting of the joint Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation before the end of this year.