Jordan, New Zealand seek further cooperation

AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour met with New Zealand's Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully on Tuesday to discuss prospects for further cooperation and issues of mutual concern.

Ensour and McCully discussed issues such as terrorism in the region, the war in Syria and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Ensour highlighted the repercussions of the Syrian crisis on Jordan, which hosts more than 1.5 million Syrians, stressing the pressure this situation imposes on the Kingdom's limited resources, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

On another note, the prime minister said that the Palestinian-Israeli conflict affects the security and stability of the entire world, calling on the international community to step up and place pressure on Israel to abide by international resolutions. 

Ensour also commended New Zealand's "historical" stances in supporting Arab issues, Mideast peace in particular, and noted that the Kingdom is willing to boost cooperation with the country at all levels. 

Regarding the issue of terrorism and the Islamic State, the premier said Islam is a religion of moderation that rejects all forms of violence and extremism, stressing that those who kill in the name of Islam do not represent it.

For his part, McCully expressed his country's commitment to maintaining its cooperation with Jordan, and to support the Jordanian mission in the UN Security Council regarding the Palestinian issue, the Syrian crisis and the war on terrorism. 

Also on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh met his New Zealand counterpart and discussed ways to boost bilateral cooperation.

Talks covered the latest attempts to relaunch negotiations between Palestine and Israel in order to reach agreement towards the two-state solution.

The two sides discussed developments in Syria and the Kingdom's efforts to fight terrorism and extremism, Petra reported.