Middle East Eye / March 5, 2023
Efforts must be accelerated to bring about two-state solution, Jordan’s King Abdullah tells visiting US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
Jordan’s King Abdullah told US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Sunday a surge in West Bank violence threatened regional stability and asked for assistance to fight a growing drug war along its borders with Syria, which he blamed on Iranian-backed militias, Jordanian officials said.
Austin arrived in Jordan earlier at the start of a Middle East tour that will also take him to Israel and Egypt in a show of support for its main regional allies against the growing threat posed by Iran, US officials said of the visit.
In a post to Twitter before his departure, the defence chief said that he would meet key leaders and “reaffirm the US commitment to regional stability and advancing the shared interests of our allies and partners”.
King Abdullah, whose country hosted the first Israeli-Palestinian meeting in Aqaba last week with the participation of top US and Egyptian officials, said efforts must be accelerated to bring about a comprehensive peace deal based on a two-state solution.
“There is a need for calm and to reduce escalation in Palestinian territories and stop any unilateral steps that undermined stability and abort chances of attaining peace,” a palace statement said after the talks between the king and Austin.
In Israel, Austin will also raise concerns about the violence in the West Bank that has alarmed Jordan and Arab leaders and discuss diplomatic efforts to reduce tensions ahead of Muslim and Jewish religious holidays, US officials said.
‘Iran-associated threats’
The US Defense Department said ahead of the visit that discussions would focus on the growing threat Iran poses to regional stability, and on advancing multilateral security cooperation with integrated air and missile defences.
Central to discussion will be the “full constellation of Iran-associated threats..,” a senior defence official was quoted as saying on the Pentagon’s official site ahead of the visit.
“Those threats include Iran’s arming, training and funding of violent proxy groups, aggression at sea, cyber threats, its ballistic missile program and drone attacks,” he added.
The king discussed with Austin Jordan’s concerns over the growing entrenchment of Iranian-backed militias in southern Syria whom officials say have stepped up drug-smuggling operations through its borders to reach markets in the Gulf, a Jordanian official told Reuters.
Amman wants more US military aid to bolster security on the border, where Washington has since the more than decade-long conflict began given around $1 bn to establish border posts, Jordanian officials say. Jordan has a roughly 375 km-long border with Syria.
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Jordan’s king tells US defense secretary West Bank violence threatens stability
Suleiman al-Khalidi
Reuters / March 5, 2023
AMMAN – Jordan’s King Abdullah told U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Sunday a surge in West Bank violence threatened regional stability and asked for assistance to fight a growing drug war along its borders with Syria blamed on Iranian-backed militias, Jordanian officials said.
Austin arrived in Jordan earlier at the start of a Middle East tour that will also take him to Israel and Egypt in a show of support for its main regional allies against the growing threat posed by Iran, U.S. officials said.
He wrote on Twitter before his departure that he would meet key leaders and “reaffirm the U.S. commitment to regional stability and advancing the shared interests of our allies and partners.”
King Abdullah, whose country hosted the first Israeli-Palestinian meeting in Aqaba last week with the participation of top U.S. and Egyptian officials, said efforts must be accelerated to bring about a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace deal based on a two-state solution.
“There is a need for calm and to reduce escalation in Palestinian territories and stop any unilateral steps that undermined stability and abort chances of attaining peace,” a palace statement said after the talks between the king and Austin.
In Israel, Austin will also raise concerns about the violence in the West Bank that has alarmed Jordan and Arab leaders and discuss diplomatic efforts to reduce tensions ahead of Muslim and Jewish religious holidays, U.S. officials said.
The U.S. Defense Department said ahead of the visit that discussions would focus on the growing threat Iran poses to regional stability, and on advancing multilateral security cooperation with integrated air and missile defenses.
Central to discussion will be the “full constellation of Iran-associated threats..,” a senior defense official was quoted as saying on the Pentagon’s official site ahead of the visit.
“Those threats include Iran’s arming, training and funding of violent proxy groups, aggression at sea, cyber threats, its ballistic missile program and drone attacks,” he added.
The king discussed with Austin Jordan’s concerns over the growing entrenchment of Iranian-backed militias in southern Syria whom officials say have stepped up drug-smuggling operations through its borders to reach markets in the Gulf, a Jordanian official told Reuters.
Amman wants more U.S. military aid to bolster security on the border, where Washington has since the more than decade-long conflict began given around $1 billion to establish border posts, Jordanian officials say. Jordan has a roughly 375 km-long border with Syria.
Reporting by Suleiman al-Khalidi; editing by Frank Jack Daniel and Hugh Lawson
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U.S. defense secretary aims to reassure Mideast allies, deliver tough message
Idrees Ali
Reuters / March 6, 2023
AMMAN – U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in Jordan to begin a three-country Mideast visit, is aiming to reassure key allies of American commitment to the region despite Washington’s recent focus on Russia and China, officials said, but plans frank messages for leaders of Israel and Egypt.
The Pentagon chief, who arrived in Amman on Sunday, is expected to press Israeli leaders to reduce tensions in the West Bank and work to strength ties in talks with Egyptian leaders while touching on human rights concerns.
“Austin will convey enduring U.S. commitment to the Middle East and provide reassurance to our partners that the United States remains committed to supporting their defense,” said a senior U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The United States has about 30,000 troops in the region and is seen as pivotal in helping counter Iranian influence.
Retired U.S. Marine Corp General Frank McKenzie, who headed American forces in the Middle East until last year, said the region is significant to the United States in part because of China’s growing role.
“I think this trip is an excellent example of an opportunity to continue to tell people in the theater (region) that they remain important to us,” added McKenzie, now leading the University of South Florida’s Global and National Security Institute.
Ties between China and Middle Eastern countries have expanded under the region’s economic diversification push, raising U.S. concerns about growing Chinese involvement in sensitive infrastructure in the Gulf including in the United Arab Emirates.
The United States last week demanded that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repudiate a call by his hardline Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich for a flashpoint Palestinian village to be “erased” – a comment that Netanyahu on Sunday called “inappropriate.” The U.S. State Department has called Smotrich’s comment “repugnant.”
“He (Austin) will also be quite frank with Israeli leaders about his concerns regarding the cycle of violence in the West Bank and consult on what steps Israeli leaders can take to meaningfully restore calm before the upcoming holidays,” the U.S. defense official said.
With the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the Jewish Passover holiday weeks away, foreign mediators have sought to reduce tensions that rose after Netanyahu regained power at the head of a hard-right coalition.
Austin is poised to send a clear message on the need for Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to respect human rights, underscoring Washington’s concern on the issue.
“I fully expect him to bring up human rights, respect for fundamental freedoms,” the U.S. defense official said.
Under Sisi, who as army chief led the 2013 ouster of Egypt’s first democratically elected president, there has been a long crackdown on political dissent that has swept up liberal critics as well as Islamists.
The United States has withheld small amounts of military aid to Cairo, citing a failure to meet human rights conditions. Advocacy groups have pushed for more to be held back.
The United States, long an important player in the Middle East, has been preoccupied with other international matters during President Joe Biden’s administration including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and concern over Chinese military activity near the self-ruled island of Taiwan.
The United States has committed more than $32 billion in weapons to Ukraine including sophisticated air defense systems and tanks.
Mistrust toward the United States among some in the Middle East has built up since the 2011 “Arab Spring” uprisings when Gulf rulers were shocked at how President Barack Obama’s administration abandoned the late Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak after a decades-old alliance.
The United States pulled out the last of its troops from Afghanistan in a chaotic withdrawal in 2021, further raising questions in the broader region about Washington’s commitment.
Reporting by Idrees Ali; editing by Will Dunham
