AMMAN — Regional issues and the effects of the war in
Ukraine topped the agenda of a
meeting between His Majesty King Abdullah and three Arab leaders, political
analysts interviewed by Jordan News suggest.
اضافة اعلان
The King met on Friday with Egyptian President
Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Abu Dhabi
Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, and
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi in Aqaba, according to a Royal Court
statement.
Citing an anonymous official source, AFP said the
“consultative brotherly meeting dealt with recent international and regional
developments”.
According to Amer Al-Sabaileh, a political analyst
and university professor, five key topics would have been discussed.
Firstly, the war in Ukraine, particularly the US’
stance on the conflict.
Secondly, the possibility of
Syria’s rejoining of
the Arab League, following President Bashar Al-Assad’s visit to the UAE on
March 18.
Meeting dealt with recent international and regional developments — AFP
Thirdly, Iran’s nuclear and ballistic arsenal, given
the Gulf Arab states’ negative attitude towards the nuclear agreement between
the Islamic republic and the West.
Sabaileh said that the meeting between the foreign
ministers of the US, Israel, the UAE, Bahrain, and Morocco will likely involve
a discussion of reviving the Abraham Accords and widening the “peace circle”.
Fourthly, the possibility of escalations of violence
in the West Bank and Gaza during the fasting month of
Ramadan, which Sabaileh
said “means that we should be ready for options that have been absent from the
political arena: (an) escalation in the West Bank would create chaos close to
Jordan and Egypt.”
Finally, Sabaileh speculated that economic relations
were discussed. He contended that it was important to establish a firm
political groundwork for any economic cooperation, as all future projects are
likely to cross borders.
“Jordan was mistaken to isolate itself in the past
years and allow other countries to play the vital role it used to play,”
Sabaileh said.
Political writer and analyst Hamadeh Faraneh told
Jordan News that the meeting likely evaluated the regional and international
situation and its effects on the Arab world, ahead of the upcoming Arab Summit
in Algeria.
Faraneh also agreed that Syria rejoining the
Arab League was one of the meeting’s discussion points alongside keeping the
Palestinian issue at the heart of the Arab League’s interests at the upcoming
summit.
In light of Assad’s visit to the UAE, Faraneh said
that this “positive attitude would open new doors.” Even if the US did not
welcome Syria rejoining the Arab League, “it would not act as a strategic
obstacle,” he said.
On the topic of the war in Ukraine, Faraneh said
that the leaders and officials would have discussed their neutral stance
towards the conflict, as “no Arab leader can take sides”.
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