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AMMAN — Jordan signed a host country agreement with NATO on Thursday to establish the Alliance’s first diplomatic liaison office in the region in Amman.
The agreement was signed on behalf of Jordan by the Kingdom's Ambassador to the EU Yousef Bataineh and NATO Special Representative for the Southern Neighbourhood Javier Colomina, during an official ceremony held at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, according to a Foreign Ministry statement.
The NATO liaison office in Amman is aimed at strengthening political dialogue and diplomatic engagement between Jordan and the Western alliance. The office will also facilitate expanded cooperation in areas such as regional security, counterterrorism, crisis management, cybersecurity, civil protection, scientific collaboration, and climate change response, the statement said.
“This agreement marks a major milestone in our strategic partnership with NATO," Bataineh said, adding that “the choice of Amman as the headquarters of NATO’s first office in the region reflects Jordan’s vital role in promoting peace, security, and stability across the Middle East.”
Colomina commended the "distinguished" NATO-Jordan relations, praising the Kingdom as a “trusted and essential partner” and commending the country’s pivotal roles in regional affairs.
Jordan is one of NATO’s key partners outside the Alliance and participates and IT benefits from many of NATO’s programs and initiatives aimed at enhancing defense and civil capacity-building and coordination in addressing challenges, the statement said.
In previous interview with The Jordan Times, Colomina has reiterated the Alliance's deep-rooted relations with Jordan and the "fundamental" role His Majesty King Abdullah in bringing stability in the region.
On the political and strategic implications of NATO Liaison Office in Amman, he said that it is the culmination of the advanced NATO-Jordan relations and will open avenues for extra areas of cooperation.
"The relationship we have with Jordan is today already very healthy, we have lots of areas of cooperation, we are using most of our partnership tools. The opening of the office will be a major change in how we cooperate with Jordan. It will open avenues for extra areas of cooperation, bring us a physical presence in Amman that will help us to achieve our mutual goals quicker. The office has a political meaning, prepared to build on the already excellent relationship, and contribute to the practical cooperation we have with Jordan," he said.
The decision to open the office in Amman was announced in the Final Declaration of the NATO Summit in Lithuania in July 2023. The Alliance said at the time that the decision "marks an important milestone in the strategic partnership between Jordan and NATO."