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Ammon News - The United States is heading to provide at least $1.65 billion in aid to Jordan for the next year, adding a new $200 million to the annual pledge announced in the memorandum of understanding signed in the past months between the two countries.

The US State Department Appropriations Act called for providing at least $1.65 billion for Jordan in 2023, of which $1.035 billion is in economic aid to support the government budget and programs implemented by the USAID, according to a report issued by the US Congressional Research Center.

The law will provide an additional $200 million for economic support purposes "according to commitments made under the bilateral agreement," and the bill commits to "providing no less than" $400 million in military aid.

Congress directed the US State Department to "continue to support the Jordanian government's efforts to implement economic and democratic reforms" and to "consult with appropriations committees on potential policy proposals aimed at helping Jordan achieve additional and long-term reforms, including in the water and public sectors," according to the report.

On September 16, the United States and Jordan signed a 4th memorandum of understanding governing foreign aid for a period of seven years (2023-2029), to provide $1.45 billion annually in economic and military aid to Jordan.

The report showed that annual US aid to Jordan has tripled over the past 15 years, and compared to the previous memorandum of understanding amounting to $6.3 billion for five years, the 4th memorandum of understanding worth $10.15 billion is higher by 13.7% annually and will continue for seven fiscal years; This represents "the largest multi-year US foreign assistance commitment," according to the report.

The new memorandum of understanding is divided into 4 categories according to funding: $610 million in direct cash support for the treasury, $400 million in military support, $350 million in support for projects implemented by the USAID and $75 million in “incentives” to support the Jordanian economy and public sector reforms.

The United States agreed to provide $1.65 billion to Jordan in the current year “2022”, $1.2 billion in economic aid; Of these, $845 million was identified as a direct cash transfer to the government, in addition to $425 million in military aid.

The report indicated that the total US aid “supervised by the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense” to Jordan from 1946 until 2020 amounted to approximately $26.4 billion.