During the past year, His Majesty King Abdullah
met with US President Joe Biden twice, confirming the close friendship and
enduring partnership between the US and Jordan. In fact, a recent statement
from the White House said: “Jordan is a critical force for stability in the
Middle East and strategic partner and ally of the United States.”
اضافة اعلان
There is currently
high tension in the West Bank, and Jordan’s role in the Holy City is under
serious threat. The King’s most recent visit may garner American support to
maintain Jordan’s historical role.
Positive
Jordanian-US relations are critical to guaranteeing Jordan’s active role in the
region and protecting its interests. However, Jordan should also pay extra
attention to its domestic challenges, like increasing economic hardship,
post-pandemic problems, social frustration, and kick start essential
development projects in various areas of the country.
Jordan needs a
clear plan for economic development involving strategic alliances that can help
it build key projects in the fields of transportation, energy, and agriculture.
Jordan needs to cope with dynamic regional changes but also manage internal difficulties; achieving this balance will require new ways of developing and implementing policies, new communication strategies, more efficient ways of policy implementation, and competent politicians.
And while economic
hardship is a serious issue, delicate regional dynamics and the potential
implications on Jordan’s internal stability must be the priority for Jordan’s
strategic thinking.
Jordan’s security
challenges are not limited to the situation in the Palestinian territories, but
are much broader, as deteriorating economic circumstances test the region as a
whole. The borders with Syria and Iraq are proving increasingly challenging,
for example.
Jordan needs to
cope with dynamic regional changes but also manage internal difficulties;
achieving this balance will require new ways of developing and implementing
policies, new communication strategies, more efficient ways of policy
implementation, and competent politicians.
Such new approach
will convince people that serious change is taking place, and can restore
credibility and citizens’ trust; concretely, it should transform the economy,
boosting local industries, increasing productivity, and food security.
The support that
Jordan has from its allies, and in particular the US, can help it play a vital
role in the region. But to play this role and protect Jordanian interests, it
is imperative to concentrate on solving domestic challenges. Moreover, it is
important to ensure that the state is portrayed as the protector of the
people’s rights and liberties.
The writer is a Jordanian university professor and
geopolitical expert. He is a leading columnist in national, regional, and
international media, offers consultancies to think tanks and speaks at
international conferences on Middle East politics and developments.
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