Commitment to pledges needed

During the recently concluded meeting with the visiting president of the Bundestag, Norbert Lammert, at the Royal Palace, His Majesty King Abdullah stressed the important role Germany plays in efforts to deal with the Syrian crisis, particularly with the influx of Syrian refugees and the support it shows host countries.

The King also urged the concerned parties, Germany included, to demonstrate their commitment to implementing the recommendations of the Supporting Syria and the Region Conference, recently held in London.

Jordan needs the international community to honour the pledges it made at the conference if it is to be able to face the colossal burden of hosting the 1.3 million Syrian refugees who fled the war in their country, seeking safe haven in the Kingdom and other neighbouring countries.

The German official voiced his country’s willingness to lend support to Jordan to enable it to deal with the repercussions of the many crises in the region, especially the Syrian crisis, stressing the international appreciation of Jordan’s role in hosting and serving refugees.

Jordan stands to receive critically needed aid from donor countries; the government is already making clear immediate, medium- and long-term plans to deal with the Syrian refugees who have entered the country for five years now, since the start of the conflict in Syria.

As the prime minister said at the Sunday press conference, the volume of support pledged to the Kingdom by donor countries shows that the Kingdom succeeded in attracting the attention of the international community to its special and urgent need for immediate and long-term support, particularly considering the meagre resources of the country, now stretched even thinner.

Jordan’s message to the world has been delivered loud and clear. What remains is to see the pledges honoured in a timely manner.