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Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - His Majesty King Abdullah II on Thursday, held talks in Canberra with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on means to forge closer ties between the two countries, mainly in the economic and trade fields.

The discussions also dealt with the latest developments in the Middle East, mainly the Syrian crisis and efforts to counter terrorism.

His Majesty highlighted the importance of intensifying regional and international efforts to counter terrorism and extremism within a holistic strategy, pointing to threats posed by terrorism to the whole world.

On the Syrian crisis, the King and the Australian premier stressed the importance of reaching a political solution that preserves the country's unity and safety of its people.

In this context, King Abdullah thanked Australia for its support to Jordan and other host countries of refugees, pointing to the pressure placed by the Syrian refugee crisis on the Kingdom's resources.

In joint statements following the meeting, His Majesty expressed his thanks and that of Her Majesty Queen Rania for the hospitality that was accorded to them by the Australian government and people.

The King stressed his keenness to continue efforts to boost relations between the two countries in various domains. His Majesty urged the international community to continue work to address the refugee crisis caused by the conflict in Syria, pointing to the burden being borne by the Kingdom as a result of hosting a large number of Syrian refugees.

The King said that failure to achieve solutions to crises in the region will lead to more violence, noting that extremists groups will continue to threaten global peace and security.

He also stressed the need to achieve progress in the peace process between the Palestinians and Israelis, noting that Jordan is ready to provide all necessary support to achieve this objective.

The Australian minister for his part, described talks between the two sides as fruitful, adding that his country appreciates the strong partnership between Jordan and Australia that is based on mutual respect.

He also pointed to the joint statement that was signed by the two sides to boost cooperation, saying that Australia is committed to further strengthening relations with Jordan.

The Australian prime minister said his country allocated $220 million over a period of 3 years in response to the Syrian crisis, in addition to $213 million that have been provided in the form of humanitarian aid since 2011.

His Majesty and the Australian prime minister attended the signing of a joint Jordanian-Australian communique as well as a memorandum of understanding in the security field to combat laundering.

The communique and the MoU were signed by Minister of Foreign and Expatriate Affairs Nasser Jdueh and Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, while the memorandum was signed on behalf of the Australian side by Minister of Justice Michael Kennan.

The joint statement specified 6 main areas of strategic cooperation between the two countries in the political, economic, counter-terrorism, defense, humanitarian and border protection fields.

Through the statement, Australia valued the custodianship of His Majesty King Abdullah II over the holy sites in Jerusalem as well as Jordan's role in administering these sites.

The two sides also pledged to boost cooperation to address regional and international issues through holding meetings at the ministerial level.

The statement said that both countries will also work to find political solutions to regional crises, mainly in Syria as well as the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

In the economic field, it said the two countries will work to boost bilateral trade as well as investment.

The statement highlighted the importance of Jordan's effective and key role in the war against terrorism as well as in bringing about peace and stability in the region.

The talks were attended by the Royal Court chief, the foreign minister and Jordan's ambassador to Australia.