House speaker reaffirms ‘deep-rooted’ Jordan-UK ties

By JT - Sep 14,2023 - Last updated at Sep 14,2023

Lower House Speaker Ahmad Safadi with Speaker of the UK House of Commons Lindsay Hoyle on Wednesday (Petra photo)

AMMAN — Lower House Speaker Ahmad Safadi on Wednesday met with Speaker of the UK House of Commons Lindsay Hoyle and Lord Speaker of the House of Lords John McFall in London, and stressed the "deep-rooted" relations between Jordan and the UK, which marked their second centennial in 2021.

Safadi also met with several members of the two houses and acquainted them with political, economic and administrative modernisation paths. He highlighted the Kingdom's willingness to move forward with these paths in order to expand popular participation in the decision making process and reach a partisan parliament, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

He referred to the “sharp and dangerous decline” in support for Syrian refugees and the importance of the international community to bear its responsibilities towards refugees and host countries.

Safadi acquainted his UK counterpart with the latest regional developments and highlighted Jordan’s constructive role as a pillar for regional security and stability.

The speaker emphasised that the Palestinian issue remains the central cause and that the region will never achieve stability except through reaching a just and comprehensive peace with the establishment of a Palestinian state.

He stressed that Jordan, under the historical Hashemite Custodianship, continues to protect the Islamic and Christian holy sites and combats ongoing Israeli occupation attempts that seek to alter the Islamic and Christian Arab identity of Jerusalem, change the historical and legal status quo, and impose a temporal and spatial division of Al Aqsa Mosque.

In this regard, Safadi called on the international community, including the UK, to exert pressure on Israel to immediately halt its unilateral practices that undermine all opportunities to achieve a just and comprehensive peace in the region.

He also said that the Kingdom aspires to enhance relations with the UK and build on the "rich legacy of partnership and friendship" between Amman and London at all levels.

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