His Majesty King Abdullah on Monday held talks with President of the Swiss Confederation Doris Leuthard on bilateral ties and the latest developments in the Middle East.
King Abdullah and Leuthard underlined their commitment to developing bilateral cooperation, particularly in the field of economy.
During the discussions, which were followed by a lunch banquet held by the King in honour of the Swiss president, the King expressed his hope that Leuthard's visit to Jordan would contribute to enhancing and institutionalising relations between the two countries at all levels with the participation of the Jordanian and Swiss private sectors.
King Abdullah briefed the Swiss president, who arrived in the Kingdom Monday on a several-day visit upon an invitation from the King, on Jordan's plans to achieve sustainable development in all fields, including mega-projects that Kingdom will launch soon, particularly in the fields of energy and water.
He also highlighted investment opportunities in the Kingdom that the Swiss private sector can benefit from, expressing his appreciation for the numerous development projects implemented in Jordan through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
Talks also covered means to boost cooperation between the two countries in the tourism, vocational training, energy and infrastructure sectors.
Regarding the latest developments in the region, King Abdullah highlighted the efforts to achieve peace and stability in the region by finding a just and permanent settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He reiterated that a two-state solution that guarantees the establishment of an independent and viable Palestinian state is the main prerequisite for comprehensive Middle East peace.
King Abdullah highlighted the importance of the European role in supporting peace efforts and overcoming obstacles to the continuation of direct talks between the Palestinians and Israelis in light of the recent expiration of a 10-month moratorium on Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank.
The King and Leuthard last met on the sidelines of the 40th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos in January of this year, where they agreed to improve communication channels to enhance economic cooperation between the private sectors in the two countries.
Jordan and the Swiss Confederation have strong economic ties reflected in the trade exchange volume, joint investments and agreements signed between them. The Kingdom's experts to Switzerland stood at JD73.81 million until the end of July, while the imports from the European country amounted to JD57.8 million during the same period. The two countries also signed an agreement on the protection of mutual investments in 2001, under which Swiss investors and those from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries are encouraged to invest in the Kingdom in the field of information technology, tourism and the manufacturing of pharmaceuticals and beauty products.
Planning and International Cooperation Minister Jafar Hassan was quoted by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, as saying that an agreement to be signed on Tuesday to develop civil defence services will be the largest assistance accord the two countries will sign.