Judeh underlines Jordan’s constants as he participates in UN meetings, OIC gathering

AMMAN — Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh on Saturday took part in a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which was held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly's 69th meeting in New York. 

At the ministerial meeting, Judeh underlined Jordan's support for the Palestinians and their right to establish their independent state, adding that the Kingdom exerted all efforts to bring to an end the July-August Israeli aggression on Gaza, including cooperating with the UN Security Council and blocs within the UN General Assembly.

He also highlighted Jordan’s role in bolstering world efforts for the reconstruction of Gaza and creating an appropriate atmosphere for the relaunch of peace talks that bring about peace based on the two-state solution and according to international resolutions and the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The minister stressed the need for the resumption of the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations to address final-status issues, and meet the Palestinians’ aspirations to have their own independent state within the pre-1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital. 

Judeh underscored Jordan’s opposition to the Israeli unilateral measures in Jerusalem and the frequent violations to the sanctity of Al Aqsa Mosque and against worshippers, as part of the Hashemites’ custodianship of the Islamic and Christian sites in Jerusalem. 

He indicated that Islam promotes “great” values, like the duty of safeguarding human dignity, tolerance, coexistence and the renunciation of terrorism, extremism and violence in general.

The minister cited Jordan’s interfaith initiatives designed to highlight true essence of Islam, such as the “Amman Message”, “A Common Word” and World Interfaith Harmony Week. 

“Today we are required more than any time to fight terrorism and extremism, not through the power of weapons alone, but also the power of the mind, wisdom and common sense that reject terrorism and call for tolerance and peace,” he said. 

Also on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting, Judeh took part in a gathering that discussed the situation in Libya, in which he called for rallying world efforts to support the unity and sovereignty of the North African Arab country, especially in light of the difficult situations surrounding the democratic transition there. 

He underlined the need to support Libya’s constitutional institutions and their quest for a modern state, noting that Jordan has provided all means of support to Libyans since the start of their country’s crisis. 

Meanwhile, Judeh met separately with the foreign ministers of Algeria, New Zealand, Singapore and Austria for talks that covered bilateral ties and prospects for further cooperation, in addition to the latest regional developments. 

He also met with US Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman and UN envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura and discussed the situation in the Middle East and the impact of the Syrian crisis on Jordan and the entire region, Petra reported.