King meets with delegation heads as new round of Aqaba meetings kicks off

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah met with a number of heads of the delegations attending the latest round of the Aqaba meetings, which opened Saturday with the aim of continuing to coordinate global efforts to counter terrorism and extremist ideologies.

Discussions in this round, held over two days in the southern coastal city of Aqaba, are focused on security challenges in east Africa, a Royal Court statement said.

In separate meetings, King Abdullah met with US Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen, Foreign Minister of Kenya Monica Juma, Chief of Defence Forces in Kenya General Samson Mwathethe and Foreign Minister of Zambia Joseph Malanji, who delivered a letter to His Majesty from President of Zambia Edgar Lungu.

The King also met with The Philippines’ National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon, Assistant Director of French Military Intelligence Rear Admiral Patrick Zimmerman and Undersecretary General of the UN Counter-Terrorism Office Vladimir Voronkov.

Discussions covered bilateral ties and efforts to fight terrorism within a holistic approach, as well as a number of regional issues, according to the statement.

The Aqaba meetings are a series of international meetings launched by His Majesty in 2015 to bolster security and military cooperation, coordination and the exchange of expertise among regional and international partners to counter terrorism.

Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, Adviser to His Majesty and Director of the Office of His Majesty Manar Dabbas, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Lt. Gen. Mahmoud Freihat and General Intelligence Department Director Maj. Gen. Adnan Jundi attended the meetings.