His Majesty King Abdullah on Saturday held talks with Indian President Pranab Mukherjee, cementing ties between Jordan and Indian, especially in economic spheres and a number of Middle East issues.

King Abdullah emphasised the need to expand Jordanian exports to Indian and strike closer partnerships in areas of fertilisers manufacturing, information technology and pharmaceutical and defense industries.

The King said he hopes the visit − the first for an Indian president to Jordan − opens broader scopes of cooperation between the two nations.

His Majesty talked about a number of agreement and memoranda of understanding the two countries will sign, including the inauguration of a multi-million joint Jordanian-Indian fertilizers factory.

Speaking on anti-terror efforts, the King said terrorism is a global challenge and a war within Islam, noting discussions with president Mukherjee on how to address this challenge.

The Indian president hailed Jordan as a model for civilisation and tolerance and that the Kingdom and India maintain common values that are based on pluralism. He stressed that terrorism has become a cross-border challenge threatening the whole world, highlighting His Majesty’s speech at the United Nations General Assembly and said the King delivered a holistic view on how to combat terror and extremism and promote peace and security in the Middle East and the world.

Turning to bilateral relations, President Mukherjee said the two-way trade exchange amounted to $1.89 billion but India hopes to see the figure rising to $5 billion by 2020. He added that his country is interested in establishing long-term partnership with Jordan with regards to importing Jordanian phosphate.