- Title: Merkel welcomes King Abdullah of Jordan for talks on Mideast crisis
- Date: 7th October 2016
- Summary: BERLIN, GERMANY (OCTOBER 7, 2016) (REUTERS) ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS EXTERIOR OF CHANCELLORY GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL AND KING ABDULLAH OF JORDAN ARRIVING TO GIVE STATEMENT CAMERAMAN (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN CHANCELLOR, ANGELA MERKEL, SAYING: "We had the London conference, and we are now implementing the results which were decided at the London conference. We talked in detail about what has become better, like more children having access to school or more people who can work. But given the high number of 700,000 Syrian refugees and a complicated situation in the country, this is only a first step and what we have talked about is how to take further steps from here." VARIOUS OF JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN CHANCELLOR, ANGELA MERKEL, SAYING: "Of course, the situation in the region will play a role, especially the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Syria and the situation in Iraq. Jordan borders both countries and therefore it's recognized the hard position the country sees itself in. Despite all that, we know how hard the king is fighting for a better economic position to maintain the hopes of younger people, and we want to cooperate. I am happy, your majesty, that you are here." CAMERAMAN (SOUNDBITE) (English) KING ABDULLAH OF JORDAN, SAYING: "The role that you have played, the leadership that you have shown - not only the leadership you have shown for Europe but for the international community in being able to raise moral bar very high on the challenges of refugees but the humanitarian aspect of this worldwide. If it hadn't been for the role of Germany and yourself, I think that our region, I think Africa and the world would be in an a lot worse position. I am here to thank not only you and the German people for what you have done for Jordan but what you are doing for our region." JORDAN, EU AND GERMAN FLAG AT ROOM (SOUNDBITE) (English) KING ABDULLAH OF JORDAN, SAYING: "It is a global problem and a global challenge and I don't think there are enough voices in the world that commend the role of the Chancellor of being able to deal with this problem. And I look forward to continuing to be able to work alongside you as a breath of fresh air that has really been able to bring some light to the challenges we are facing not only in my region but further afield." JOURNALISTS KING ABDULLAH / KING ABDULLAH AND MERKEL SHAKING HANDS AND LEAVING
- Embargoed: 22nd October 2016 15:41
- Keywords: Germany Merkel King Abdullah of Jordan Mideast crisis
- Location: BERLIN, GERMANY
- City: BERLIN, GERMANY
- Country: Germany
- Topics: Diplomacy/Foreign Policy,Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA0015309YRR
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Jordan's King Abdullah thanked German Chancellor Angela Merkel for raising the "moral bar very high on the challenges of refugees" on Friday (October 7) during an official visit to discuss the Mideast crisis.
Merkel talked about positive outcomes from the London conference in February, when donors convened to tackle the refugee crisis created by the Syrian conflict, but said much more work needed to be done.
"(We) are now implementing the results which were decided at the London conference. We talked in detail about what has become better, like more children having access to school or more people who can work. But given the high number of 700,000 Syrian refugees and a complicated situation in the country, this is only a first step," the chancellor said at a news conference in Berlin.
On Wednesday (October 7), Chancellor Angela Merkel acknowledged that her open-door migrant policy had unleashed a wave of aggression from right-wing opponents in Germany but made clear that her course was unchanged.
The comments, made to Germany's Die Zeit weekly, came two days after several hundred right-wing protesters jeered her in the eastern city of Dresden.
However Jordan's king praised Merkel for her efforts.
"If it hadn't been for the role of Germany and yourself, I think that our region, I think Africa and the world would be in an a lot worse position. I am here to thank not only you and the German people for what you have done for Jordan but what you are doing for our region," he said.
"I had there are enough voices in the world that commend the role of the Chancellor of being able to deal with this problem."
Merkel's decision last year to open Germany's borders led to the arrival of around 900,000 refugees, mostly Muslims. That triggered fears among voters about integration and eroded Merkel's own popularity. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2016. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None