The visit of King Abdullah II of Jordan to Pakistan holds the status of a milestone in the bilateral historic and brotherly relations between the two countries. During this visit, the President of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari awarded the King of Jordan the Nishan-e-Pakistan, which is Pakistan’s highest civil award. Here, it is essential to acknowledge that as a result of this high-level visit by the King of Jordan, the diplomatic and military trajectory of the country has increased.
It is worth mentioning once again that Jordan was the fifth country that recognized Pakistan, and Pakistan sent its forces in the 1970s to assist the military of this country, so it would be justified to say that the historic and brotherly relations between Pakistan and Jordan are not spread over years, but over decades.
King Abdullah II of Jordan visited Pakistan’s defense institution, Global Industrial & Defence Solutions, yesterday. Accompanying him were Princess Salma bint Abdullah and a high-level delegation of civil and military officials. On this occasion, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir received him warmly, gave a detailed briefing, and held discussions on further advancing Pakistan’s domestic defense production, technological innovation, and bilateral defense cooperation with Jordan. Wearing the uniform of Commander-in-Chief and Field Marshal, the King of Jordan also visited the Tilla Firing Range, where Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was present. At the firing range, a practical demonstration of land, air, and multi-domain operations was conducted. The King of Jordan praised the professional skills of the soldiers and aircrew participating in the exercise. In the past, King Abdullah II also served in the British Army as a troop leader after graduating from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. If not many, then at least some Pakistani generals have also graduated from the same academy, which is regarded as the world’s premier military academy.
Jordan, like other countries of the world, has been interested in knowing with what astonishing and unparalleled courage and bravery Pakistan defeated India in the Battle of Truth. And since King Abdullah II is himself a Field Marshal, his military-level one-to-one conversation with Field Marshal Asim Munir remained quite interesting, and the world is also watching it with interest. Here we must understand that the world is not only observing Pakistan’s military strength but also realizing how we defeated such a powerful force, therefore Pakistan’s significance is increasing even more in this regard. And certainly, this is the reason Pakistan has also begun gaining successes and advantages on the diplomatic front, which will be discussed in the coming days.
On the issue of Palestine, the position of Pakistan and Jordan is not only identical, but the King of Jordan has consistently spoken against the displacement of Palestinians from their homes, which is exactly a key point of Pakistan’s foreign policy. However, in one respect Jordan’s position on the Palestinian issue differs from Pakistan and other countries because, as a neighboring state of Palestine, Jordan is directly affected by Israel’s aggression on Gaza and, in general, all of Palestine. Nevertheless, the principled position of Pakistan and Jordan on the two-state solution of the Palestinian issue is certainly the same. Pakistan’s position is that it supports the establishment of a free, sovereign, and contiguous Palestinian state based on the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, and both countries strongly oppose the displacement of Palestinians from occupied Palestine including Gaza.
The visit of the King of Jordan has helped take bilateral relations between the two countries to new heights. For example, on November 16, both countries signed four MoUs and agreements, among which the MoU related to a cultural cooperation program is included, which aims to promote cooperation in the cultural sector between the two countries, including joint cultural activities and exchanges. The second MoU concerns establishing Urdu and Pakistan Studies chairs at the University of Jordan to strengthen educational and public connections between the two countries. The third MoU was between Pakistan Television Corporation and Jordan Radio and Television Corporation, which promotes cooperation in the media sector, including program exchanges and joint productions, while the fourth MoU is an agreement between Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation and Jordan Radio and Television Corporation based on cooperation in the broadcasting sector, which will ensure the sharing of radio and television content and technical assistance.
Not only this, but better relations with Jordan will help bring Pakistan into a stronger diplomatic position across the region, including Syria and Lebanon, while in the words of Field Marshal Asim Munir, both countries are striving for regional peace and stability.
Just a few hours from now, the United Nations Security Council is expected to approve an important resolution regarding Gaza, intended to provide relief to Palestinians, and it is also expected that this resolution will include progress toward the two-state solution of the Palestinian issue. After that, in the coming days, an International Stabilization Force comprising forces from Pakistan and other countries will be deployed in Gaza. Thus, overall, this visit of the King of Jordan is of great significance, and this significance will continue to become more evident in the coming days.
