Azernews.Az

Turkish President Abdullah Gul and Jordan's King Abdullah have discussed the regional developments and bilateral relations in their tete-a-tete meeting, Anadolu news agency reported.

"King Abdullah's visit comes at a time of important developments in the Middle East and northern Africa. Within this framework, Syria issue is very important. There are many Syrians both in Turkey and Jordan. Jordan has been hosting over 300,000 Syrians. As you know, we host over 180,000 Syrians. We discussed these widely. We talked about the Middle East peace process extensively. We handled other issues about our region," Gul said at a joint press conference after his meeting with King Abdullah.

Gul said that he was glad to host King Abdullah and Queen Rania in Turkey, and he emphasized the consolidation of the strong ties of friendship and brotherhood between Turkey and Jordan.

Pointing out that King Abdullah is accompanied by leading businessmen from various sectors, Gul said that Jordanian delegation's meetings in Turkey would also focus on economic relations.

Gul mentioned that they were pleased to receive mutual benefits of the free trade, customs and visa exemptions agreements signed during his visit to Jordan in 2009.

Expressing his gratitude and greetings for the open and transparent House of Representatives elections in Jordan on January 23, Gul said, "This visit definitely has strengthened our bilateral relations."

Gul, stating that King Abdullah would meet Turkish and Jordanian businessmen on Wednesday and hold talks about defense industry, indicated that he would also accompany King Abdullah.

Gul on Tuesday hosted a dinner in the honor of visiting Jordanian King Abdullah II.

Gul said Turkey fully supported steps taken by King Abdullah II to make political and economic reforms in his country.

Gul said Turkey and Jordan share same views over regional problems and ways to solve them, adding that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was the core issue for instability at the heart of the Middle East.

"Our both countries believe that without a solution to the Palestinian issue, there can be no lasting peace and stability in the region," Gul said.

Gul said Turkey and Jordan were the two most affected countries from the crisis in Syria, adding that instability in Iraq also risked escalation of tensions and political instabilities in the wider region.

King Abdullah II, on his part, said that Jordan and Turkey faced common challenges, which he said required joint efforts to tackle regional and global stability.