Jordan Times
Friday, January 29, 2010
King meets world leaders
at Davos forum
AMMAN (JT) - His Majesty King Abdullah held talks on Thursday with several
leaders who attended the 40th anniversary of the World Economic Forum, the
Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported from Davos, Switzerland.
During a meeting with Swiss Confederation President Doris Leuthard, the two
leaders addressed means to boost Jordanian-Swiss relations in all areas,
particularly in economic fields. Talks also addressed the current conditions in
the Middle East region.
King Abdullah discussed with Leuthard ways to benefit from the Swiss experience
in developing the decentralisation programme the Kingdom intends to launch to
increase public participation in the decision-making process and achieve
development in the various governorates.
Addressing the latest regional developments, King Abdullah stressed the
importance of the European role in supporting ongoing efforts towards the
resumption of Palestinian-Israeli negotiations to resolve the conflict on the
basis of the two-state solution and within a comprehensive regional context.
Also on Thursday, the King held talks with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev,
during which the two leaders addressed the need to take practical and
institutional steps to increase cooperation, especially in the areas of economy,
industry, investment and trade.
They stressed the importance of encouraging joint investments between the two
countries' private sectors, especially in the sectors of defence and
pharmaceutical industries, services, health, education, IT and construction
engineering services.
The Monarch and the Azerbaijani president also discussed the latest developments
in the Middle East, especially efforts to push for the resumption of
Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.
The King also met with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and discussed means
to enhance economic and investment cooperation in implementing joint renewable
energy and infrastructure projects.
During the King’s visit to South Korea at the end of 2008, the two countries
signed a cooperation agreement on the use of nuclear energy for peaceful
purposes, as well as a memorandum of understanding on economic and development
collaboration.
The King also held talks with Slovenian President Danilo Turk, during which the
two sides addressed ways to foster economic and commercial ties as well as
investment cooperation. They also reviewed regional developments and means to
achieve Middle East peace.
On the sidelines of the forum, the King met with Israeli President Shimon Peres.
During the meeting, discussions focused on the need to overcome hindrances
impeding the resumption of Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.
The King stressed that the entire region and its people will not have peace and
security unless the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is resolved on the basis of the
two-state solution.