Jordan king a loyal ‘US ally in tough neighbourhood’

WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden praised King Abdullah II of Jordan as a stalwart ally in a “tough neighbourhood” as the two leaders huddled at the White House on Monday, a meeting that came at a pivotal moment for both leaders in the Middle East.

Last week a Jordanian state security court sentenced two former officials to 15 years in prison over an alleged plot against the king uncovered earlier this year that involved Abdullah’s half-brother.

Meanwhile, Biden, who has put much of his foreign policy focus on China and Russia in the early going, faces some difficult issues in the Middle East. He is dealing with stepped-up attacks against US troops in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-backed militias at the same moment that his administration is trying to nudge Iran back to the negotiating table to revive the nuclear agreement that Donald Trump abandoned during his presidency.

“You have always been there, and we will always be there for Jordan,” Biden said during an Oval Office meeting with Abdullah and his son, the Crown Prince Hussein.

Biden has no plans to reverse US recognition of Jerusalem as the capital. His administration has even praised the Abdullah, for his part, praised Biden for “setting the standard” internationally in the battle against COVID-19.

The US delivered 500,000 vaccines to Jordan days ahead of the king’s visit. The king also appeared to make clear that he was looking to reset the US — Jordan relationship after a four bumpy years with Trump.

“You can always count on me, my country, and many of our colleagues in the region,” Abdullah said.

The two leaders discussed the situation in Syria — more than 1 million Syrian refugees have fled the war-ravaged nation for Jordan — and a wobbly security situation in Iraq, an administration official said.

At least eight drone attacks have targeted the US military presence in Iraq since Biden took office in January, as well as 17 rocket attacks.

Abdullah was set to have a working breakfast on Tuesday with Vice President Kamala Harris and to meet Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

The Trump administration last year indicated it was considering withholding aid to Jordan in a bid to secure Al Tamimi’s extradition. She was convicted in Israel of a 2001 bombing of a Tel Aviv restaurant that killed 15 people, including two American citizens. She has lived freely in Jordan since she was released in a Hamas-israel prisoner swap in 2011.