Cooperation with Jordan ‘excellent’, based on long-lasting ties — Swedish ambassador

AMMAN — Sweden’s Ambassador in Amman Alexandra Rydmark on Monday said that her country and Jordan maintain “excellent” cooperation based on long-lasting ties.

In an interview with the Jordan News Agency, Petra, Rydmark said: “Jordan plays an important role in the Middle East region and is a valued partner in efforts to prevent and solve conflicts, be it in the Israel-Palestine conflict, Syria or Yemen.”

She noted that the Swedish embassy in Amman, which celebrated 40 years in 2021, has grown to become her country’s biggest in the region, which, she added “illustrates Jordan’s role as a regional hub”.

The ambassador said cooperation with Jordan covers a wide range of fields, including regional and international cooperation, trade, cultural affairs, migration issues, regional development cooperation and Sweden’s response to the Syrian humanitarian crisis.

Rydmark emphasised that Sweden has always had a long-term and broad engagement with the Middle East, saying: “A corner stone to that policy is our firm commitment to finding a lasting peace in the region. Sweden and the EU will, along with Jordan, continue to do everything we can to support negotiations towards a peaceful, sustainable two-state solution based on international law.”

She added that Sweden and the EU “consistently express concerns about developments on the ground, which threaten the two-state solution. Development cooperation to Palestine is also part of Sweden’s overall engagement”.

According to the ambassador, Amman and Stockholm continue to work closely to politically and financially support UNRWA.

In this context, Rydmark noted that her country has, in the past years, co-hosted many high-level meetings aimed to ensure support for the UN agency to continue providing its vital services.

Asked about prospects for closer Jordanian-Swedish cooperation, the envoy said: “Contacts between our countries are already happening at all levels; between the Royal families, at the political level, in business, in education and culture as well as between different organisations for example those working for human rights and gender equality. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic there were many high-level visits between our countries.”

Rydmark said she was “pleased to see the big interest from all sides of Swedish society to visit, learn and meet Jordanians”, adding that the Swedish embassy in Amman often plays the role as a facilitator to enhance relations further.

The embassy also works actively to promote Sweden through cultural, educational and networking activities all around the Kingdom, and through its social media channels, the ambassador indicated.

“We want to communicate what is happening in Sweden and what Sweden is doing here in Jordan and in the region. We want to give the Jordanian audience a perspective on priorities in Sweden’s foreign policy; such as gender equality, sustainable development, human rights and freedom of expression,” Rydmark emphasised.

Highlighting economic and business cooperation between Jordan and Sweden, the ambassador said both nations do business in several areas including healthcare, natural resources, telecommunications and retail.

However, the ambassador indicated that there is potential to further develop bilateral trade relations between Sweden and Jordan and that more can be done in finding synergies in fields where both Sweden and Jordan are at the forefront, such as the ICT sector for example.

She said that Sweden has renowned, well-developed expertise in areas like energy efficiency, environmental technology, ICT and healthcare, smart cities, and sustainable public transport solutions among others.

Speaking about Sweden’s role in development cooperation in Jordan and the Middle East, the ambassador noted that her country has a regional development cooperation programme, in which Jordan is included. 

The programme, Rydmark said, seeks to supports efforts in four areas: to improve human rights, democracy, rule of law and gender equality; economic development and regional trade; climate and sustainability as well as peaceful and inclusive societies.

She also noted a bilateral programme for peaceful development in Yemen, saying: “We believe that this regional approach creates synergies across different countries which often share the same challenges.”

The ambassador stressed that “Sweden is and will also remain one of the largest humanitarian donors to the millions of people in need due to the conflict in Syria, now in its 12th year.”

“I would also like to stress Sweden’s active participation in European Union dialogue and cooperation with Jordan. Sweden is also one of the major donors to the United Nations, and our support to their humanitarian work and development-oriented programmes is among the largest in the world,” Rydmark pointed out.

On Sweden’s feminist foreign policy and how it is relevant to Jordan, the ambassador said she is proud to represent Sweden’s firm belief and consistent work for gender equality and human rights, both nationally and internationally.

She stressed that gender equality is about equal rights and opportunities for all individuals, noting that in Sweden, gender equal policies have been essential in advancing economic growth and in building a welfare state.

Rydmark noted that 12 of the 23 current Swedish government ministers — including the prime minister — are women and that nearly half of the members of the current parliament in Sweden are also women. 

She affirmed that there is still a lot of work to be done to strengthen women’s roles, rights and influence whether in Sweden or elsewhere.

The ambassador pointed out that since 2014, the Swedish government pursues a Feminist Foreign Policy based on the conviction that human development, security and economic growth can never be fully achieved if half the world’s population is excluded.

She said: “In practice, it is a working method for our embassy and a perspective that takes three Rs as its starting point. In our daily work, when planning meetings, events or projects, my colleagues and I always strive to strengthen women’s and girls’ Rights, Representation and Resources.”

Turning to Sweden’s renowned green innovation and ambitious climate actions, the ambassador said country is hosting the Stockholm +50 international environmental conference in June to accelerate the implementation on the Sustainable Development Goals and to encourage the adoption of green post-pandemic recovery plans.

Rydmark stressed that her country is looking forward to continuing to work with Jordan towards a successful outcome of the conference. She said: “Stockholm +50 aims to take an inclusive approach on how we reimagine a common, prosperous future on a healthy planet. Regional and national consultations will be held with Swedish support this spring with various stakeholders like local governments and communities, civil society, women, academia as well as the business sector.”

With regard to Sweden’s position on the war in Ukraine, the ambassador said: “Sweden and the EU stand united in their support for the Ukrainian people and Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as in condemning the Russian military aggression against Ukraine, which violates international law. Sweden and the EU have also scaled up support to Ukraine and taken unprecedented economic sanctions.”