US increases aid to Jordan with five-year deal that flies in the face of Trump rhetoric
President Donald Trump’s rhetoric about punishing countries that disagree with US policy in the Middle East collided with reality yesterday as his administration increased aid to Jordan by $1 billion (Dh3.67bn) in the next five years.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Al Safadi signed the increased package in Amman. It represents a 27 per cent increase on current levels and is two years longer than the existing package.
It came despite repeated threats by Mr Trump to cut aid to countries that opposed his recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
Mr Tillerson called the package “a signal to the rest of the world that the US-Jordan partnership has never been stronger”.
Jordan is a critical American partner in the Middle East but has opposed Washington’s approach to Israel and Palestine. In December, Amman condemned the US for recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and then last month again criticised America for withholding tens of millions of dollars in funding for Palestinian refugees, many of whom live in Jordan.
Nonetheless, yesterday’s memorandum of understanding will provide Jordan with $1.28bn in US aid a year until 2022. The annual amount includes $750 million in economic aid to support Jordanian reforms and $350m in military assistance.
Mr Tillerson and Mr Al Safadi acknowledged the disagreements but said the end goal of both countries remained the same. “We have different views on Jerusalem but we share a commitment to peace,” Mr Al Safadi said.
“We have differences as any countries may have from time to time, over tactics I think more than final objectives,” Mr Tillerson said. “I think our final objectives are quite clear and are shared.”
Jordan, a longtime partner of the US and one of only two Arab nations to have full diplomatic relations with Israel, plays a key role in the region and in Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts.
Mr Al Safadi said Jordan saw no alternative to a two-state solution and that his country looks forward to a peace proposal that the Trump administration has been preparing for release in the coming months.
Mr Tillerson did not say when the US might put it forward.
Yesterday’s announcement represents a victory for Mr Tillerson and US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis, both of whom argued against the Jerusalem decision and had lobbied to continue assistance to Jordan on national security grounds.