Buckingham Palace was the scene of the meeting of two Kings when, on Thursday, 10 November, King Charles III met King Abdullah II of Jordan.
The Hashemite sovereign was in the UK’s capital for a working visit that earlier in the day saw him also meet His Holiness Pope Francis and Vatican City’s Secretary of State Pietro Parolin. For that meeting, he was joined by Queen Rania.
However, he seems to have arrived in the UK alone, and according to the Royal Hashemite Court, his meeting with the British monarch was focused on cooperation and international news.
King Charles and King Abdullah “expressed pride in the deep-rooted ties” between the two countries, based on the bond that unites the two royal families, as well as the people of the two countries.
The Jordanian sovereign then expressed his wish to keep building on those ties and increase the cooperation of the two countries through all sectors “in service of mutual interests”, said the Royal Hashemite Court.
In his father’s absence, recently engaged Crown Prince Hussein was nominated regent in front of cabinet members. He will be in charge of running the country until his father’s return.
As was to be expected, the two monarchs also discussed current events, both on a regional and an international level. The Middle East has been particularly affected by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as most of the world has stopped importing Russian oil, which has placed increased pressure on the Middle East to increase its supplies.
There has also been a food insecurity issue stemming from the Russian blockade of most Ukrainian ports, which were the main export terminal of different grains bounded for countries that don’t produce enough on their own, plunging some parts of the world on the brink of famine. This, in turn, increases migration fluxes, with Jordan being one of the leading countries that welcomes refugees in the area.
On the regional level, the political turmoil and economic consequences faced by the UK are a topic of discussion in many countries, as well as the seeming resurgence of internal conflict in the Middle East.
This is not the first time that King Charles and King Abdullah have met since the former’s accession to the throne; the Jordanian King and his wife were guests at the funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
