On the picture, His Majesty King Abdullah II and Primer Minister Charles Michel.
By Baron Henri Estramant.
43rd direct generation descendant of the Islamic prophet Mohammed, His Majesty King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, paid a visit to Belgium and the European institutions between 9 and 11 March 2015.
On 9 March 2015, His Majesty met at “Le Lambermont”, Belgium’s official residence of the country’s Prime Minister, Charles Michel, to discuss bilateral relations as well as the ongoing crises in Syria, Iraq and the larger Middle East.
The same Monday, King Abdullah II was received by NATO’s Secretary-General, the Norwegian Jens Stoltenberg in the presence of the permanent representatives accredited to NATO. The UAE is hitherto the only Arab country to have an ambassador/permanent representative exclusively accredited to NATO, Mr. Mohammed bin Ali Alnaqbi, since having sworn his oath before the UAE President back in April 2012.
Jordan is an strategic partner for NATO; having deployed troops under NATO’s command in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Lybia.
The next day King Abdullah II held his fourth speech (2002, 2007, 2012 and 2015) at noon before a plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg. Half hour before the monarch held a meeting with the parliament’s president, the German national and Social Democrat Mr. Martin Schulz.
The Royal Jordanian Embassy in Brussels was responsible for arranging the King’s visit to Brussels alongside the Royal Hashemite Court. A Jordanian embassy in Brussels accredited to Belgium, Luxembourg, the EU, NATO and even Norway. The incumbent chargée d’affaires a.i. is Ms. Ghealan bint Mohammed Qudah. The visit was set in motion by former ambassador Dr. Montaser Oklah Al Zou’bi who is due to be succeded by Ambassador-designate Dr. Yousef Bataineh.
After his departure from Europe, the Hashemite monarch headed to Morocco to meet his Sharifian counterpart, King Mohammed VI, who likewise claims descent from the Clan of Hashem, albeit the Moroccan Royal House uses the name Alaoui. King Abdullah II was joined in Morocco by his wife, HM Queen Rania Al-Abdullah, his uncle and spouse, TRH Prince El Hassan bin Talal and Princess Sarvath as well as the latters’ son, HRH Prince Rashid and wife Princess Zeina Al-Rashid and HRH Prince Ali bin Al Hussein, currently running for the post of FIFA president.
Mohammed VI, King of Morocco, and Defender of the Faithful, welcomed his “brother” King Abdullah II and other Hashemite royals at the Royal Palace in Casablanca. The two monarchs discussed bilateral ties including a strategy to increase trade between the two kingdoms which last year merely amounted to 40 million EUR in spite of a free trade agreement.
The working visit began on 11 March, and lasted three days. Whereafter the Hashemite monarch invited King Mohammed VI and his wife, HRH Lalla Salma to visit their “second home” of Jordan. The Moroccan Royal Family including HRH The Crown Prince, Moulay Hassan, HRH Moulay Rashid (The King’s brother) and his wife HRH Lalla Oum Kaltoum, Mohammed VI’s sisters, TRH Lalla Meryam and Lalla Hasna were at hand to welcome and see off the visiting Jordanian delegation led by King Abdullah II.
Jordan has a resident embassy in Rabat, Morocco’s capital, headed by Ambassador Ali bin El Hassan El Kayed.
The Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign and of Expatriate (Jordanians) Affairs, Mr. Nasser Joudeh, participated in all the high-level meetings in Brussels, Strasbourg and Casablanca.
