Jordan: We did not treat Iran as a threat to our national security

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
12 Jul 2022 20:24
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Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher Al-Khasawneh says that Jordan seeks good relations with Iran.

Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher Al-Khasawneh

In an interview with BBC Arabic, Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher Al-Khasawneh said that "Jordan had never considered Iran a threat to its national security, nor did we get any offer to attempt to form a regional military framework."

Al-Khasawneh indicated that "Jordan seeks to reach a formula of dialogue with Iran based on relations of neighborliness, given the healthy relationship the two have had over recent years."

In response to a question about King Abdullah II's recent statements about his support for the "Middle Eastern NATO", Al-Khasawneh explained that "King Abdullah II never talked about an actual initiative and was only responding to a hypothetical question," adding that "Jordan was not offered any formula to form regional military framework.

On the other hand, in an interview with the American CNBC channel, on June 24, Jordan's King Abdullah II noted that "Jordan is actively working with NATO and considers itself a partner in the alliance, having fought shoulder to shoulder with NATO forces for decades."

Abdullah added, “I would like to see more countries in the region getting involved in this mix. I would be one of the first people to endorse a Middle East NATO,” noting that the vision of such a military alliance must be very clear, and its role must be specific and "the mission statement has to be very, very clear. Otherwise, it confuses everybody.”

In parallel, Speaker of the Iranian Shura Council, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, said Tuesday, July 12th, that the expansion of NATO towards the east and its neglect of geopolitical consequences has caused the war to erupt in Ukraine, pointing out that this scenario is now being repeated in the Middle East.