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Jordan Relations with the Arab States
In 1989 Jordan maintained relatively cordial relations with
most other Arab states. Jordan's closest ties were with Egypt,
Iraq, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia. King Hussein made frequent trips to
these countries to confer with their leaders on regional and
international strategy. Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and other Arab oilproducers provided Jordan with financial aid in accordance with
guidelines originally agreed on at the November 1978 Baghdad
Summit. The total amount of these grants had declined dramatically
by 1984 because of the budgetary problems that depressed oil prices
caused in petroleum-producing countries. Nonetheless, they remained
an important source of total government revenue for Jordan
(see Jordan - GDP by Sector
, ch. 3).
Jordan's close relations with Iraq developed as a result of
Hussein's strong support for President Saddam Husayn during the
latter's eight-year war with Iran (1980-88). The monarch's ardent
backing of Saddam was attributable at least in part to his fears
that a collapse of the Iraqi regime could result in Jordan's
eastern neighbor being ruled by a radicalized Shia religious
government allied to Iran. The relationship also benefited Jordan
in various ways. For example, Jordan's only port, Al Aqabah, served
throughout the war as a major transshipment center for Iraqi
imports. Goods off-loaded at Al Aqabah were trucked overland to
Iraq by Jordanian transportation companies, in the process
generating local employment, handling fees, and profitable
business. Jordan also exported a variety of light consumer goods to
Iraq, although the value and volume of this trade fluctuated in
accordance with Iraqi foreign exchange problems. Both during and
after the war, Iraq, whose army used primarily Soviet-made
equipment, periodically gave to Jordan United States- and Britishmade military hardware captured from Iran, including at least sixty
United States-manufactured M-47 tanks
(see Jordan - Military Cooperation with Other Arab States
, ch. 5).
In 1984 Jordan became the first Arab state to reestablish
diplomatic relations with Egypt. Hussein had begun advocating
Egypt's reintegration into the Arab community of nations as early
as 1981. The king perceived Egypt as an effective bulwark against
the spread of radical Islamic political movements that he believed
were being engendered by the Iran-Iraq War. Following the 1982
Israeli invasion of Lebanon and the expulsion of the PLO from that
country, unofficial consultations with Egypt on regional security
issues became routine. PLO chief Arafat's trip to Egypt in December
1983--the first by an Arab leader since the Baghdad Summit of
November 1978--paved the way for Jordan's resumption of official
relations without fear of being branded a traitor to Arab
nationalism.
Following the reestablishment of diplomatic relations, Jordan
and Egypt became extremely close allies. Hussein frequently praised
Egyptian president Husni Mubarak as one of the Arab world's great
leaders. Mubarak supported Hussein's pro-Iraq policy, his efforts
to involve moderate Palestinians in the peace process, and his call
for an international peace conference. Hussein and Arafat met
several times on "neutral" Egyptian territory; when their personal
relations were tense, such as in 1986-87, Mubarak mediated and kept
them on civil terms. Hussein reciprocated Mubarak's diplomatic
support by trying to persuade other Arab heads of state that Egypt
should be readmitted to the League of Arab States (Arab League). In
February 1989 Egypt and Jordan joined with Iraq and the Yemen Arab
Republic (North Yemen) to form a new Arab Cooperation Council, a
regional organization modeled after the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Jordan's relations with Syria were correct in 1989, although
there had been considerable strain between them during most of the
previous two decades. In September 1970, a Syrian military unit had
crossed into Jordan to aid the Palestinian guerrillas who were
fighting the Jordanian army. The Syrian force was repulsed, but
relations remained tense and were severed in July 1971. Relations
with Syria improved briefly following the October 1973 War, but
deteriorated again by the late 1970s. Syria apparently feared
Hussein's close ties with Washington would involve Jordan in the
Camp David process. When religiously inspired disturbances broke
out in Aleppo and other Syrian cities during the winter of 1979-80,
the government immediately suspected--and accused--Jordan of
complicity. In addition, Syria had a bitter rivalry with Iraq.
Damascus perceived Amman's support of Iraq in that country's war
with Iran (initiated by an Iraqi invasion of Iran in September
1980) as confirmation of conspiracy theories about Baghdad trying
to encircle Syria. By the end of 1980, relations between Jordan and
Syria had deteriorated to such an extent that military clashes
appeared possible along the common border where both countries had
massed troops. The escalating tension eventually was defused by
Saudi Arabian diplomatic intervention, although relations remained
strained.
Jordan broke diplomatic relations with Syria in 1981, charging
Damascus with plotting to assassinate its prime minister and
kidnapping its ambassador to Lebanon. For the next five years, the
two neighbors were estranged. Amman accused Syria of assisting
radical Palestinian groups who carried out several political
killings of Jordanian diplomats in Europe and the Middle East.
Tentative efforts to improve relations in 1983-84 were aborted by
Syrian denunciation of Jordan's resumption of relations with Egypt.
Finally, in the fall and winter of 1985-86, Saudi Arabia mediated
reconciliation talks that led to a restoration of diplomatic ties.
In May 1986, the Jordanian prime minister became the first highranking official from Amman to visit Syria since 1977. Relations
between Jordan and Syria gradually improved since then.
Jordan maintained cordial relations with the Arab states of the
Persian Gulf in 1989. These countries--Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates--were
collectively Jordan's most important source of foreign financial
aid. The level of their assistance, especially that from Kuwait,
has fallen, however, since 1981. Thousands of Jordanians and
Palestinians holding Jordanian passports continued to work in the
Persian Gulf in business, government, education, and engineering.
The remittances they sent to their families in Jordan, especially
those living in the refugee camps, represented a significant
proportion of Jordan's foreign exchange earnings. The Persian Gulf
countries also were markets for Jordanian agricultural and consumer
exports.
Jordan's relations with the other Arab states--excepting Libya-
-were generally good in 1989. Tensions existed over economic policy
between Jordan and Morocco, however, as both countries exported
phosphates. The amount of Jordan's reserves of these minerals and
the value of its exports were significantly less than those of
Morocco, a major international producer. Jordan, which
traditionally exported its phosphates to Southeast Asia, complained
that Morocco had stolen its Asian markets between 1985 and 1987 by
deliberately selling its phosphates at prices lower than it cost
Jordan to mine and transport the minerals.
Jordan had a history of tense relations with Libya, deriving
from Libyan support since 1970 for Palestinian guerrilla groups
opposed to Hussein. The most serious incident between the two
countries occurred in February 1984, when the Jordanian embassy in
Tripoli was destroyed during demonstrations organized by the Libyan
government to protest Hussein's support of Arafat and his call for
reconciliation with Egypt. Jordan broke diplomatic relations
following this episode. In 1988 Jordan received a Libyan delegation
sent to Amman to discuss normalizing relations between the two
countries.
Data as of December 1989
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