House speaker in Greece to discuss region, ties

AMMAN — Lower House Speaker Atef Tarawneh on Thursday delivered the greetings of His Majesty King Abdullah to Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos at the presidential palace in Athens, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

Pavlopoulos sent his greetings to King Abdullah and voiced his country's readiness to support Jordan and enable it continue its major role in the region, especially in receiving refugees and combating terrorism.

Tarawneh highlighted the reforms Jordan undertook and reviewed the repercussions of the Syrian crisis on the Kingdom. 

He reiterated that the main reason behind growing terrorism and violence is the failure to reach a fair solution to the Palestinian cause and not implementing international resolutions fairly. 

Also on Thursday, in separate meetings with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Hellenic Parliament President Nikos Voutsis, Tarawneh urged Athens to play a part in resolving the issues of the Middle East, particularly the Palestinian cause and the Syrian crisis.

During the meeting with Voutsis, Tarawneh talked about combating terrorism and promoting the "true peaceful image" of Islam. 

He said the Lower House is looking forward to cooperating with the Greek parliament and voiced interest in enhancing bilateral relations. 

Tarawneh also discussed the instability near the Kingdom's borders and the pressures brought on Jordan's infrastructure due to hosting a large number of refugees.

For his part, Voutsis voiced his country's interest in enhancing relations with Jordan, especially in the economic and parliamentary fields, commending the Kingdom's efforts in dealing with the region's issues.