Prime Minister of Jordan Ali Abu Al-Ragheb's Visit to Japan
November 1, 2001
1. Summary
Jordanian Prime Minister Ali Abu Al-Ragheb discussed measures to combat terrorism, the Middle East peace process, and Japan-Jordan bilateral relations with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on October 30 and Minister for Foreign Affairs Makiko Tanaka on October 29, in his visit to Japan from October 29 to November 1, 2001.
2. Outline
(1) Combating Terrorism
In the meetings, Prime Minister Koizumi and Foreign Minister Tanaka praised Jordan's firm actions in condemning the terrorist attacks right after they happened and expressing unwavering support for the international community's efforts to fight terrorism. They also stated that Japan strongly recognized the importance of Jordan's role in the issue of terrorism and emphasized that Japan considered this fight not to be a fight against the Arabs or Islam but a fight against terrorism.
In response, Prime Minister Abu Al-Ragheb stated that Jordan had suffered from terrorism and had been fighting against it. He also stated that Jordan and the United States had been consulting closely since the terrorist attacks and that the United States had to succeed in its military operations.
(2) Middle East Peace Process
Prime Minister Abu Al-Ragheb expressed his grave concerns over the present Palestinian situation and said that it was important that major countries had expressed their support for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state as it gave hope to the Palestinian people for their future. He also stated that Jordan had been making continuous efforts to bring the two parties back to the negotiation table. He noted that Japan was respected by the Middle East countries and expressed his hope that Japan would make even greater efforts in addressing the issue in order to bring about peace in the region together with the European Union and the United States.
In response, the Japanese side stated that, through the letter issued by Prime Minister Koizumi and phone talks with Foreign Minister Tanaka, Japan had called on Israel to exercise self-restraint. Prime Minister Koizumi stated that in order to gain the cooperation of Arab and Islamic countries in the fight against terrorism, making progress on the Middle East peace process was important, and that Japan would continue to play an active role.
(3) Bilateral Relations
Prime Minister Abu Al-Ragheb delivered a message from His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan to Prime Minister Koizumi. After emphasizing the importance of the role that Jordan is playing in the fight against terrorism and in the Middle East peace process, Prime Minister Abu Al-Ragheb mentioned Jordan's massive debt (Japan is its largest creditor), high unemployment rate, and high poverty rate and expressed his hope for assistance from Japan.
Prime Minister Koizumi and Foreign Minister Tanaka replied that Japan's economy and government finances were also severe and that it was necessary to conduct Official Development Assistance, which is on a trend toward reduction, effectively and selectively. They also stated that Japan fully understood the importance Jordan plays in such areas as the Middle East peace process and the fight against terrorism and expressed Japan's desire to cooperate in such a way as to contribute to peace in the Middle East.
3. Results
(1) Regarding the issue of terrorism, the fact that Japan and Jordan were able to bilaterally confirm their support for U.S.-led actions was extremely important from the perspective of gaining cooperation from Arab and Islamic countries to strengthen international cooperation against terrorism.
(2) Both sides were of the same opinion in their recognition that it is important to make progress on the Middle East peace process at the same time as responding to the problem of terrorism. Jordan, which is playing an important and constructive role concerning peace in the region, stated that Japan's role in Middle East peace is important and expressed the hope that Japan would become even more active in this area.
(3) Regarding bilateral relations, Jordan, which has a debt problem, appealed for assistance from Japan. While the circumstances surrounding Japan's government finances are severe, Japan was able to receive Jordan's understanding to an extent that Japan wishes to continue to cooperate in a way that will contribute to Middle East peace.
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