Jordan’s role indispensable in safeguarding regional stability — Cypriot president

• Christodoulides calls for increased int’l support for Jordan in caring for refugees
• Cypriot leader affirms two-state solution, highlights importance of Hashemite Custodianship
• President stresses urgency to return to negotiating table to resolve Cyprus problem

AMMAN — Jordan plays an indispensable role in tackling regional crises and maintaining stability, and any efforts sans the Kingdom’s  contribution will fail, said Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides.

In an exclusive interview with The Jordan Times, President Christodoulides, who began his official duties on March 1 of this year, noted that one of his first meetings on his visit to Jordan was with His Majesty King Abdullah. “I consider this visit as very important because for us, Jordan is a country of priority,” he added.

“We fully recognise His Majesty and Jordan’s role as a pillar of stability in a very difficult neighbourhood,” he said.

Jordan and Cyprus share common challenges and to successfully tackle them, the Kingdom needs to be a part of these efforts, the president said.

“For example, the Middle East peace process, the Syrian issue, the issue of refugees. Without Jordan having a major role in addressing those issues, there is no way that we can solve the problem,” President Christodoulides said.

Turning towards bilateral ties, which the president described as particularly “excellent” over the last six to seven years, President Christodoulides noted the presence of a “clear political will from both sides to enhance them on issues that impact the daily life of people”.

President Christodoulides also expressed his satisfaction with the increase in Cypriot tourists to Jordan, given that the average flight time between the two countries is only 45 minutes. He also pointed to the fact that there are currently no direct flights between Cyprus and the US, noting that the only available options have layovers in Greece, Frankfurt and London. Travellers would greatly benefit from layovers in Jordan, given the short flight time, he said.

Regarding the issue of wildfires, Cyprus and Jordan recently presented a joint initiative to the European Union to support the establishment of a regional fire safety centre in Cyprus with the purpose of more effectively fighting fires in Jordan and the broader region.

He also noted the importance of the trilateral partnership between Jordan, Cyprus and Greece, stating: “We need developments that would touch the ordinary Cypriots, Greeks and Jordanians. The firefighting is one aspect, trade is another aspect, tourism is another aspect. There are a lot of opportunities.”

President Christodoulides spoke about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

“We fully understand that the attention of the international community right now is Ukraine. The whole international community is dealing with this unacceptable Russian invasion in Ukraine, and its consequences. So, the international attention for other regions is much less than it used to be,” he said.

“His Majesty can play a leading role in this effort, bearing in mind his excellent international relations to bring attention to our region.”

On the issue of migration, the president said that it is “a huge burden for Jordan, and it’s also a huge burden for us”.

“Almost 7 per cent of our population now are migrants coming to Cyprus and applying for asylum,” he said.

“The solution is not to just give money to those countries. The solution is to face the root causes of why these people leave their countries,” such as climate change, he said.

During the 2023 UN General Assembly, foreign ministers of Cyprus, Greece and Jordan will meet in New York in order to prepare for high-level meetings between the leaders of all three countries, which will take place in Cyprus by the end of October.

Regarding funding shortages for refugee support, the president said: “We fully disagree with the decision to decrease the funds given that Jordan doesn’t receive the assistance that it should receive from the international community.”

He asserted that other countries receive a disproportionately higher amount of funding to address the number of migrants they receive compared to the quantity of migrants in Jordan. “We’ll raise this issue in the EU,” he said.

“I know very well that a great majority of refugees that live in Jordan have the same access to services like the Jordanians. They have the same access to schools, health and all those issues. This is not a given, and this is not the case in all countries,” the president said.

Regarding climate change, the president noted that “our region is negatively influenced… So we need to work together”. He noted that climate change is on the agenda to be discussed during the trilateral meeting to be held in Cyprus in October.

In discussing the Middle East peace process, the president reaffirmed that although Cyprus has a “good relationship with Israel”, “our position on the solution of the Palestinian issue is clear — two-state solution, a solution based on the UN Security Council resolution”.

The Cypriot leader mentioned that he has planned to travel to Ramallah to have a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

“We fully support, and are in favour of the Hashemite Custodianship over the Holy Sites in Jerusalem. We cannot have a Middle East peace process without Jordan playing a leading role,” he added.

He noted that as an EU member, Cyprus will leverage their influence to reignite Middle East peace talks.

Turning to the resumption of negotiations about the Cyprus problem President Christodoulides said: “We cannot change our geography.”

“We’re trying our best to work on a positive agenda and to bring Turkey back to the negotiating table. Like the Palestinian issue, the same applies for the Cyprus issue, that is, a solution based on the UN Security Council resolution. We cannot continue with the Cyprus problem unsolved.”

Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots are paying the price for the non-solution of the issue, he added.

“We are ready to discuss the EU-Turkey relationship. I know that Turkey is asking for several developments from the European Union within the full spectrum of the EU-Turkey relationship. We are ready to approach this positively, as long as Turkey is returning to the negotiation table and will resume negotiations from the point that they stopped in December 2017. We always aim to find a solution based on the UN resolution.”

When asked about his visit, the president said: “When I’m in Jordan, I feel that I’m at home. It’s amazing how the Jordanians approach Cypriots. And one of the messages that I will send from Cyprus… is to encourage much more Cypriots to visit this beautiful country.”