Safadi stresses the need to continue providing financial support to UNRWA

Jordan Daily –  Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ayman Safadi, on Friday, stressed the need to find a real prospect for resolving the Palestinian issue on the basis of the two-state solution.

In a dialogue session during the work of the Rome Conference for Mediterranean Dialogues, Safadi warned of the impossibility of continuing the current situation, as a political horizon is absent and the economic challenges facing the brotherly Palestinian people and the Palestinian National Authority are exacerbated. However, he warned that steps to better the economic situation will not substitute a political solution.

Safadi also stressed the need to continue providing financial support to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), indicating the danger of the continuing financial deficit in its budget to its ability to provide vital services to refugees, including education for more than 560,000 students.

In response to a question, Safadi said that the Palestinian issue was and will remain a priority for the Kingdom, pointing to the continuation of Jordanian efforts aimed at launching effective and productive peaceful efforts to resolve the conflict on the basis of the two-state solution.

He added, that undermining the two-state solution will make the reality of one state the only outcome, and this “reality will be ugly, as it will perpetuate an apartheid state.”

In response to another question, Safadi said that the Kingdom’s priorities also include reaching a political solution to the Syrian crisis, in which there would be a collective Arab role, which preserves Syria’s unity, restores its security, rids it of terrorism, and creates conditions for the voluntary and safe return of refugees.

Al-Safadi referred to the efforts made by the Kingdom to achieve progress in efforts to reach a political solution to the crisis.

Meanwhile, he warned of the repercussions of the decline in international support for refugees. Safadi also stressed the need for Lebanon to protect the state and the people, pointing out in response to a question that protecting Lebanon requires effort from within and assistance from outside. Safadi referred to the efforts launched by His Majesty King Abdullah II to help Lebanon, including providing it with electricity and gas.

Safadi stressed the need to support Iraq and the efforts made by the Iraqi government to establish stability and security after Iraq’s victory in defeating terrorism.

Responding to a question, Safadi said that Jordan will continue to work to resolve regional crises and achieve security, stability and prosperity. Al-Safadi talked about the economic consequences of the coronavirus pandemic on Jordan, and the efforts made to mitigate its economic consequences.

The Rome Conference for Mediterranean Dialogues has been launched since 2015 and is held annually to discuss regional and international issues of common interest to the countries of the Mediterranean basin.