AMMAN: Jordan’s King Abdullah met Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares on Wednesday in Amman, with their discussions focusing on reaching an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, Jordan News Agency reported.
During the meeting, attended by Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah, King Abdullah emphasized the urgent need to halt the conflict in Gaza, protect civilians and ensure the flow of humanitarian aid.
King Abdullah expressed his appreciation for Spain’s support for a Gaza ceasefire and its backing of UNRWA funding, alongside Spain’s commitment to the two-state solution as a path to peace. The Spanish foreign minister affirmed Spain’s dedication to assisting humanitarian needs in Gaza and supporting aid delivery.
He reiterated Jordan’s firm stance against the displacement of Palestinians and the division of the West Bank and Gaza, advocating for both territories’ inclusion in a future Palestinian state.
King Abdullah also underscored the necessity for a political framework that fostered a just and comprehensive peace based on the two-state solution, guaranteeing an independent Palestinian state established along the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Albares later met the Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi.
The two officials signed a memorandum on bilateral political consultations and a memorandum between the Jordanian Diplomatic Institute in the foreign ministry and the Diplomatic School in the Spanish ministry of foreign affairs.
At a press conference, Safadi said: “I welcome his excellency, the Spanish Foreign Minister, Jose Albares, on his first visit to the Kingdom to discuss mechanisms for building on the strategic partnership and friendship that binds the two kingdoms and to coordinate our efforts to stop the Israeli aggression on Gaza.
“At the bilateral level, we held extensive talks to agree on practical steps to increase cooperation between the two countries and build on the outcomes of the visit made by His Majesty King Abdullah II to Spain last year and his meeting with the prime minister.
“Spain has a major role in the EU and has a great history of working to achieve peace in the region. It was from Spain that the peace process began more than 30 years ago,” Safadi said.
Safadi thanked Albares for Spain’s “clear positions on the side of justice, ending injustice, achieving peace and fulfilling the rights of the Palestinian people in a way that also brings security to Israel within the framework of efforts aimed at building a complete and lasting peace.”
Albares said: “Jordan and Palestine are our largest partners in humanitarian cooperation, and we have committed about €90 million ($99 million) this year to cooperation in these areas.
“In Jordan, there are approximately 2.5 million Palestinian refugees, and part of these contributions that we will make to UNRWA will reach Jordan.
“UNRWA is an international institution that is not replaceable. It provides education to more than 200,000 students, and tens of thousands of people enjoy the health services it provides to them and other services,” he said.
