German ambassador highlights ongoing support for Jordan

AMMAN — The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation will meet between October 25 and 27 in Berlin over new allocations for Jordan for this year, Germany’s Ambassador to Jordan Bernhard Kampmann said on Saturday.

During an interview with the Jordan News Agency, Petra, on the occasion of his country's national day, "Day of German Unity", the diplomat said that Jordan with its stability and location could be a hub for production and export to the region.   

Highlighting his country's ongoing support for Jordan that is experiencing refugees and climate change-related challenges, he noted that Germany has contributed more than 905 million euros in support of refugees in Jordan since 2012, including food assistance, protection, healthcare and psychosocial support.

Germany, this year, has so far committed some 118 million euros of humanitarian assistance to refugees in Jordan, he added, noting that in 2020 Germany's commitment for joint projects reached 400 million euros.

Germany, the second largest donor to Jordan, acknowledges the Kingdom’s challenges due to the crises in neighbouring countries, hosting of refugees and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic, Germany has modified the programmes and offered an additional 78.5 million euros in humanitarian and development funding to support Jordan's anti-coronavirus efforts, the envoy said. 

Germany has also helped in the delivery of 437,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine to Jordan in 2021, as part of the global vaccination platform "Covax", the ambassador noted.

He also said that German exports to Jordan in 2020 reached 633.36 million euros, while imports from Jordan totalled 35.3 million euros.

On the Palestinian cause, the diplomat highlighted the key role of the Munich Group, which includes Jordan, Egypt, France and Germany, in following up on the developments of the Palestinian cause and its efforts to re-launch serious negotiations to realise a just and lasting peace.

The Munich Group believes that peace is a strategic choice and a necessity for the regional and international security, he noted.

Germany sees that "the occupation will be occupation" and the Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories are illegal under international law, as well as any changes to June 4, 1967 lines must be based on a negotiated agreement between the two parties, he said, highlighting his country's efforts towards reviving serious negotiations in this regard.

He adding Germany has provided over 200 million euros of humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people.