Kuwaiti minister, Jordanian officials discuss bilateral ties

The visiting Kuwait Minister of Communications and Minister of State for Housing Affairs Salem Al-Utheina underlined the importance of the reciprocal visit between Arab officials in bolstering mutual ties and cooperation in different fields. In statements to KUNA following a meeting with senior Jordanian officials and Kuwaiti Embassy staff here, Al-Utheina said that the meetings and visits help strengthen the special relations among Arab countries. He noted that he visits Amman also to participate in the 50th session of the executive office of the Arab Transport Ministers Council to be held here Friday afternoon. For his part, Jordanian Minister of Public Works and Housing and acting Minister of Transportation Walid Al-Masri welcomed Minister Al-Utheina visit to Jordan. He also lauded the close relations between Jordan and Kuwait. Minister Al-Masri expressed gratitude for Kuwaiti leadership and people for their support to Jordanian economy. Kuwait has granted Jordan USD 1.170 billion to finance several development projects in the Hashemite Kingdom as a part of USD 5 billion Gulf Cooperation Council grant to Jordan. As per the GCC 2011 summit resolution, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Qatar should pay USD1.25bn to help Jordanian government meet growing financial problems. In addition to Kuwait's share of the GCC grant, the KFAED has offered a number of loans to Jordan over the past years, which amounts to 26 loans worth a total of about KD 172 million, or USD 584 million to finance projects in various sectors, in addition to 6 grants and technical assistance totaling about KD 3.1 million, or about USD 10.9 million to finance the preparation of the technical and feasibility studies for a number of economic projects.