jordan pulse -

Today, His Excellency the President of the Syrian Arab Republic, Bashar Al-Assad, received the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriate Affairs, Ayman Al-Safadi, in a meeting to discuss efforts to reach a political solution to the Syrian crisis and address its consequences, in addition to bilateral relations.

Al-Safadi reviewed the efforts made by the Kingdom to gradually move towards a comprehensive solution that ends the crisis and addresses its humanitarian, security and political consequences internationally and in the context of the Arab track that was launched after the Jeddah and Amman meetings.

The meeting focused on the issue of the return of refugees and the necessary steps to enable the voluntary return of refugees.

Al-Safadi discussed with the Syrian President the danger posed by drug smuggling across the Syrian border to the Kingdom and the necessity of cooperation in confronting it.

President Bashar al-Assad stressed the importance of brotherly relations between Jordan and Syria, and the need to develop them to serve the interests of the two brotherly countries.

Al-Safadi and his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Al-Miqdad, held extensive talks that dealt with many bilateral issues, and the Arab track to contribute to resolving the Syrian crisis.

The two sides agreed on the composition of the joint committee to combat drug smuggling, and to agree on a date for holding its first meeting in Amman. It was also agreed to hold meetings between relevant officials in the water, agriculture, transport and energy sectors.

The two ministers reviewed the preparations for the meeting of the Arab Liaison Committee, which is expected to be held next month.

In a joint press conference with Al-Miqdad, Al-Safadi said that his meeting with President Al-Assad dealt in depth with bilateral issues, and efforts to reach a political solution to the Syrian crisis that "ends this catastrophe and addresses all its humanitarian, security and political consequences, and guarantees Syria's unity, territorial integrity and sovereignty, and achieves the aspirations of the brotherly Syrian people, and saves them." from terrorism, and creates conditions that allow the voluntary return of Syrian refugees.”

Al-Safadi added that his meeting with the Syrian President and his talks with Al-Miqdad resulted in an agreement to hold a meeting of the joint committee on water to deal with this file, and meetings between the transport ministers of the two countries in order to address issues related to this issue, and other technical meetings that deal with bilateral issues and contribute to increasing cooperation, which reflects well on the two brotherly countries and peoples.

Al-Safadi indicated that it was also agreed to form a joint committee to deal with the drug smuggling issue in implementation of the Amman Declaration, and for this committee to hold a meeting as soon as possible.

Al-Safadi stressed that drug smuggling through Syria to Jordan is a real and escalating danger that must be faced with cooperation, and that the Kingdom will continue to do everything necessary to "protect our national security from this danger."

With regard to the efforts aimed at reaching a political solution to the Syrian crisis, Safadi said that after the Jeddah meeting and during the Amman meeting, "we agreed on something like a road map to gradually solve the Syrian crisis and address its consequences." Al-Safadi added, "We want to take practical steps towards addressing the consequences of this crisis, and to prepare for the meeting of the Arab Liaison Committee, which was approved by the Arab League, which we hope will meet well next month, so that there will be practical outputs that contribute to addressing the consequences of the crisis."



Al-Safadi said that the crisis, which spanned 12 years and had great consequences, would not be resolved overnight, "but we started a serious Arab path aimed at resolving the crisis," and according to a methodology based on the principle of step versus step and consistent with Resolution 2254 so that there would be a practical move towards a solution. .

Al-Safadi said that the Kingdom is one of the most affected by the Syrian crisis and is greatly concerned with its solution.

Al-Safadi stressed that the issue of refugees is a fundamental issue for Jordan, as it hosts about 1,300,000 Syrian brothers, only 10% of whom live in refugee camps, 90% of whom are scattered in all cities, villages and towns of the Kingdom, pointing out that Jordan has granted more than 300,000 A work permit for refugees, and that about 155,000 Syrian students study in public schools.

He said that Jordan is doing everything it can to provide a decent life for the refugees, "but what we affirm is that the future of the refugees is in their country, and the solution to the refugee issue is in the return of the refugees to their country," and this requires creating conditions that ensure their return and providing them with a decent life. "Our efforts are continuing to invest in the necessary infrastructure to encourage the voluntary return of refugees and provide them with the requirements for a decent life in their country," he added.

Al-Safadi also stressed the need to cooperate with the international community in efforts to resolve the Syrian crisis, because the sanctions are imposed by the international community, "and we must follow a path that takes us towards creating conditions that allow the end of these sanctions and Syria's full recovery."

Al-Safadi stressed that great difficulties face efforts to reach a political solution to the crisis, "but we realize the inevitability of this effort because resolving the Syrian crisis is a fundamental interest for Syria and the brotherly Syrian people, and an interest for us in the region and an interest for the world as well, because the consequences of this crisis were reflected not only in our region, but also outside. this area".

Al-Safadi said, "We have a lot of work ahead of us, a great effort ahead of us, and we agree on the foundations on which we must proceed, and the Amman Declaration is a road map that we are moving towards its implementation and progress towards a final solution to this crisis."

In response to a question about the Arab effort to contribute to resolving the Syrian crisis, Al-Safadi said, "What we as Arab countries want is for the Syrian crisis to end. How? After the Jeddah meeting and the Amman meeting, we put together a road map. I believe that progress in implementing this map and addressing the issues raised will take us to Where we want to go."

"But frankly, there must also be steps that convince the international community that there is progress in order for the sanctions to be lifted," he added.

Al-Safadi indicated that the Amman Declaration spoke of the need to address the humanitarian, security and political repercussions of the crisis. He pointed out that on the humanitarian side, there are "issues of the return of refugees, missing persons and other humanitarian issues, and on the security issue in general, all threats to the security of the region that were born from the crisis and the conditions created by the crisis must be addressed, and on the political side, reaching national reconciliation that restores Syria's security and wellness." . He added, "There are approved references, there are international resolutions, there are agreements that have been concluded, and above all there is clarity that progress towards resolving the crisis requires gradual treatment of its consequences in the three main headings that were mentioned."


On the issue of refugees, he added, of course, the refugee will not return unless he is convinced that he is able to provide a decent life for his family, in terms of security, and in terms of the existence of the requirements for a decent life. He said that he had spoken with his Syrian counterpart about "what is required in Syria and what is required internationally so that we can move forward."

Safadi said, "At the Amman meeting, we talked about the voluntary return of about a thousand refugees, so that these return. What is required of the Syrian government? And what is required of the international community? I think we are very close to crystallizing the foundations on which this process will take place."

In response to a question about what is required practically for progress in efforts to resolve the crisis, Safadi said, "There is an in-depth discussion about the steps required to address the consequences of the humanitarian, security and political crisis. Of course, we will not be able to resolve this discussion in one, two or three meetings. We are talking, but in principle we agree." However, any progress toward resolving the crisis must mimic all of these consequences.

Al-Safadi said, "We cannot deal with everything at once. We must be gradual, because in practice we cannot deal with everything (at once). Therefore, there is a frank, transparent, profound discussion of everything that is required until we reach the result we want, and the result we want." We want it to be a comprehensive solution to the Syrian crisis that ends this catastrophe and ends the suffering it caused to the Syrian people and the threats it produced to the entire region."

In addition, Syrian Foreign Minister Dr. Faisal Al-Miqdad said, "When we talk about Syria and Jordan, we are talking about one country and people, and common interests."

He said that the most important topics discussed were the recent Arab summit, the bilateral relations between the two countries, and "in this context, we found that we have a common interest for security and stability to prevail in our Arab countries, especially in the region."

"We are consulting with our brothers in Jordan on many issues, including the issue of refugees, as you know, and the best means for the return of these refugees to their country, Syria," Al-Miqdad said.

Al-Miqdad added, "We repeated once again to every Syrian, wherever he is in this world, the right to return to his country, and he is welcome, and he will be dealt with within the framework of the law and within the framework of sovereignty, and there is no one in Syria who has been pushed by the state to leave his homeland, as he does not need to be fired." The invitation, but we need to secure basic requirements in order to achieve this return.

Al-Miqdad pointed out the importance of deep bilateral coordination, especially before the next meeting of the Arab Liaison Committee, "so that we are ready to come up with unified visions that reflect an authentic Arab position, in order to solve the problems we face in Syria and the problems facing the region in general."

In response to a question about securing the conditions for the return of refugees, Al-Miqdad said that he knows what Jordan offers to the Syrian refugees, "But look outside Jordan to see this really sad picture. In all this is an opportunity to invite every Syrian citizen to return to his homeland, and make sure that he will not find any objection." in return."

Al-Miqdad said in response to a question, "We consulted in Amman, we consulted in Jeddah, and we consulted on the sidelines of the Arab summit (about efforts to solve the crisis), and there are a set of ideas and a set of perceptions."