Jordan, Russia to hold regular meetings on cooperation

AMMAN — Jordan and Russia have agreed on holding the meetings of the joint ministerial committee for development, technical and scientific cooperation during the last third of 2018, a statement from Planning and International Cooperation Ministry said on Sunday.

On the sidelines of the committee's meetings, the two countries' public and private sectors will convene in a business forum, the statement said.

The agreement came during meetings between Planning and International Cooperation Minister Imad Fakhoury with Russian senior officials on the sidelines of St Petersburg International Economic Forum 2018.

St Petersburg forum concluded on Saturday with 15,000 participants including Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Emanuel Macron and Japanese Prime Minster Shinzo Abe.

According to the statement, Fakhoury met with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and Representative of Russian President for Middle East and North Africa Affairs Mikhail Leonidovich Bogdanov, Minister in Charge of the Development of Integration and Macroeconomics Tatyana Valovaya and representatives of St Petersburg municipality.

Fakhoury described the Jordanian-Russian committee as an important "podium" for discussing development and cooperation in economy, investment, tourism and technical fields.

The minister's talks with the Russian officials also covered building on the memorandum of understanding signed between the two countries last year, which entails establishing economic cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union, a coalition established by Russia that encompasses that states of Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

Fakhoury stressed the importance of studying and working on turning the memo into a free trade agreement between Jordan and Russia.

He said that Jordan is seeking to find new markets for Jordanian products and industries to stimulate economy and attract new investments.

In his meeting with St Petersburg Municipality representatives, Fakhoury discussed the prospects of holding technical and scientific cooperation agreements and twinning projects with cities such as Aqaba.

Marking the 55th anniversary of the Jordanian-Russian diplomatic ties, Jordan is keen on boosting cooperation in various fields including economy, energy, health, pharmaceuticals, tourism, mining, education and developing sea ports.