His Majesty King Abdullah, on Thursday held two separate talks with Japan's Speaker of the Lower House of Parliament, Tadamori Oshima, and President of the House of Councillors, Chuichi Date that focused on boosting bilateral ties and means to develop cooperation at all levels, especially in the economic, investment, security and parliamentary domains.

During the meetings, King Abdullah highlighted that Jordan is looking forward to enhancing and expanding relations with Japan and benefiting from its capabilities and experiences in different areas. The King stressed that Jordan is keen to benefit from strengthening the strategic partnership with Japan in various fields, as there are great opportunities to expand and boost relations between the two countries.

His Majesty also voiced appreciation for Japan's assistance to the Kingdom, which enabled it to implement development programmes and projects and deal with the repercussions of the large influx of Syrian refugees to the country.

Talks also touched on the Syrian crisis, where the King reaffirmed the importance of reaching a political solution for the Syrian crisis that ends the suffering of the people and guarantee and peace and stability in the country.

King Abdullah highlighted the burdens being shouldered by Jordan as a result of hosting more that 1.3 million of Syrian refugees, which placed huge strain on hosting communities and on many vital sectors including education, healthcare, water and energy.

The meetings also tackled the latest regional developments, the Syrian crisis as well as regional and international efforts to fight terrorism and its organisations.

Lower House Speaker Tadamori Oshima said his country highly appreciates the role Jordan plays under the leadership of His Majesty to bring about peace, security and stability to the region. He also commended the King's efforts, in cooperation with the international community, in the fight against terrorism and extremism.

Oshima also praised Jordan's efforts in dealing with the Syrian refugee crisis despite its limited resources and economic difficulties. He also expressed his country's appreciation for His Majesty and the Jordanian government’s stance in providing relief and medical assistance to the Japanese people following the earthquake that hit Japan in 2011.

He expressed hopes for greater cooperation and exchange of experiences between the houses of parliament of the two countries.

President of the House of Councillors, Chuichi stressed his country's keenness to enhance cooperation with the Kingdom and support its efforts in addressing regional challenges. He also congratulated the King on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of Jordan’s independence, and voiced keenness to strengthen cooperation between the two countries in various domains.

The meetings were attended by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, the director of the King's Office, Jordan's ambassador to Japan, as well as Japan's ambassador to the Kingdom and key members of foreign and defence committees in the two countries' houses of parliament.