Jordan and the UK: Looking ahead to a prosperous next century

This is a momentous year for Jordan, as it marks 100 years since the creation of the Emirate of Transjordan and 75 years of Jordanian independence. For the Government and people of the United Kingdom, this marks a century of relations with one of our most valued partners. It is an opportunity to celebrate the breadth and depth of the connections that have flourished between us since 1921, and to begin laying the foundations for the next hundred years.

While our ties date back more than a century, the relationship today is a dynamic and forward-looking one. The recent publication of the UK’s Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy places great emphasis on our partnerships with key allies like Jordan. The UK, as a champion of democratic sovereignty, stands up for values that matter to us most. We are working closer than ever with like-minded friends and partners to protect and promote these values around the world. As the UK’s Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, I am reminded every day of the UK and Jordan’s shared interest in promoting security and stability across the region.

Since Jordan’s inception, our two countries have pushed for a more peaceful Middle East. British and Jordanian officers work together in the Global Coalition against Daesh and in Jordan’s wadis and deserts. Our two countries train alongside each other at the UK military institution, Sandhurst and I reaffirm the UK-Jordan military partnership will strengthen as Jordan is a key ally and partner in the region. 

In relation to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, we share Jordan’s commitment to the two-state solution as the best way to permanently end the occupation and bring peace and stability to the region. We support the historical Status Quo in Jerusalem including the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan’s important and positive role as custodian of the Holy Sites.

Our partnership stretches beyond regional security. On the economic front, we have assembled a global coalition of leaders and investors to support inclusive growth and job creation in Jordan, through the London Initiative launched by King Abdullah II and the former UK prime minister in 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic has posed economic challenges for that scheme of work, but have made it even more essential. I was delighted to co-chair the most recent meeting of the Initiative’s Taskforce in February this year. I welcomed the progress on Jordan’s ambitious reform agenda in areas such as tax and investment law, and the determination to build back better after the pandemic. To help Jordanian families recover from COVID-19, we have provided £25 million to Jordan’s National Aid Fund for emergency support to 293,000 households, helping vulnerable families to get back on their feet.

Stimulating investment is critical to the joint recovery of Jordan and the UK from the pandemic. The private sector must be the engine for this growth. UK support for business-to-business links over 2019-2020 led to £48.41 million in investment, sales contracts worth £84.45 million and the creation of 1,930 jobs in Jordan. The UK has supported the Jordan Investment Commission to attract investment critical to long-term growth. Under our first bilateral UK-Jordan trade agreement, which entered into force on 1 May, I hope bilateral trade can go from strength to strength.

Jordan’s young, educated and motivated youth population is a hugely exciting asset for the Kingdom. That is why the UK has invested in the skills of Jordan’s youth, providing £29 million towards the World Bank’s Youth, Technology and Jobs programme, creating training opportunities for 15,000 young Jordanians and 10,000 new jobs in the technology sector.

The UK and Jordan share an understanding of the importance of international cooperation in combatting COVID-19. Many Jordanians have benefitted from a vaccine developed in the UK between the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca. Beyond this, the UK has played a leading role in championing global access to COVID-19 vaccines, including by contributing £548 million to the COVAX facility to support global access to vaccines. As His Majesty King Abdullah has said, the virus does not stop at borders and nor should our cooperation. As we recover from the pandemic and tourists return to the popular holiday destination that is Jordan, they can walk the ancient pathways of Jerash, admire Petra’s architecture, and visit the impressive SESAME science laboratory and Jordan’s solar power farms.

The UK will host the 26th UN Climate Change Conference, COP26, in November later this year and we are committed to helping countries around the world to tackle climate change and its far-reaching effects. All Parties to the convention, including Jordan, must come forward with ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions that tackle the emissions reductions needed to keep our world safe.

Over the last hundred years, the UK and Jordan have built a partnership to the great benefit of both of our peoples. It is clear that a successful and resilient Jordan goes hand-in-hand with a prosperous and secure United Kingdom. We look forward to another 100 years of fruitful friendship.

James Cleverly is the British minister of Middle East and North Africa