Jordanian, Russian ministers sign cooperation protocol

AMMAN —  Jordan and Russia on Monday signed the protocol of the fourth meeting of the joint ministerial committee for development, trade, economic, scientific and technical cooperation.

Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Mary Kawar and Russia’s Minister of Agriculture Dmitry Patrushev signed the protocol in Moscow, a statement sent from the Planning Ministry said on Tuesday.

The signing ceremony was preceded by a ministerial meeting that discussed cooperation in the fields of trade, economy and investment, agriculture, energy, industry, transport, communications, information technology, customs, education, culture, tourism, monuments and health.

The two sides stressed continued support for the Jordanian-Russian Business Council and mutual visits by delegations of business representatives, as well as the promotion of Jordanian and Russian products in the markets of both countries.

Kawar said that the fourth meeting of the joint ministerial committee came as a follow up to the discussions that took place between the leaders of the two countries during the visit of His Majesty King Abdullah in February 2018 to the Russian Federation. 

During the visit, His Majesty and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed on bolstering bilateral relations between the two countries, enhancing cooperation and readiness to solve emerging issues and following up on the last three meetings by the ministerial committee.

The Jordanian delegation discussed with the Russian side the preparation of a programme for development assistance to Jordan to finance projects of priority and the idea of establishing a Russian industrial zone in the Kingdom.

The Jordanian delegation also proposed that the Russian side participate in major projects in the fields of infrastructure in the form of public-private partnerships.
 During the meeting, Kawar stressed the Jordanian government's keenness on signing a free trade agreement between Jordan and Euro-Asian countries in light of the Kingdom's memorandum of cooperation with the Euro-Asian Economic Commission on September 20, 2017, which was the first step towards signing a free trade agreement.

She noted the coordination between the concerned parties and the business community of both countries to hold a forum for Jordanian-Russian business representatives at the earliest possible opportunity.

The planning minister also noted that the Jordanian government had developed a reform plan for the next five years in cooperation with the World Bank.

The plan will be presented at the next conference on Jordan, hosted by the United Kingdom on February 28, 2019 with the aim of presenting priorities and progress on economic, financial and structural reforms and the economic stimulus plan for the period 2018-2020.

The plan will also outline capital projects and investment opportunities for developing infrastructure and government services, which will be implemented through partnerships between the public and private sectors, according to the minister.

She said that the reform plan for the next five years included high-priority reforms, hoping that their achievement would contribute to increased economic growth and employment opportunities.