Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani shakes hands with Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi in Amman, Jordan, January 7, 2025. REUTERS
Jordan and Syria have agreed to form a joint security committee to secure their border, combat arms and drug smuggling and work to prevent the resurgence of Islamic State (ISIS) extremists, the Jordanian foreign minister said on Tuesday.
Western anti-narcotics officials say the addictive, amphetamine-type stimulant known as Captagon has for years been mass-produced in Syria and that Jordan is a transit route to the oil-producing Gulf states.
Jordan's army has conducted several pre-emptive air strikes in Syria since 2023 that Jordanian officials say targeted militias accused of links to the drug trade, as well as the militias' facilities.
"We discussed securing the borders, especially the threat of arms and drugs smuggling and the resurgence of Islamic State. Our security is one, we will coordinate together to combat these mutual challenges," Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told a joint press conference with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani.
Shibani, who was in Amman after visiting Qatar and the United Arab Emirates following the December 8 fall of President Bashar al-Assad, told Safadi that drug smuggling would not pose a threat to Jordan under Syria's new Islamist rulers.
"The new situation in Syria ended the threats posed to Jordan's security," Shibani said. "When it comes to Captagon and drug smuggling, we promise it is over and won't return. We are ready to cooperate on this extensively."
Answering a question about US sanctions on Syria, Shibani said the latest move by Washington to ease restrictions on humanitarian aid for Syria should be a step towards a full lifting of sanctions, which were imposed to isolate the Assad government over its deadly crackdowns on opponents.
He added that existing sanctions posed a major obstacle to the recovery of Syria from 13 years of devastating civil war.
Safadi said Jordan is ready to supply post-Assad Syria with electricity immediately and is also working to provide it with gas.
Safadi has already visited Damascus since Assad's fall, meeting in late December Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa.
Jordan, one of only a handful of Arab countries to keep its embassy in Damascus open throughout the civil war since 2011, also hosted an international summit on Syria on December 14, less than a week after Assad was deposed.
Jordan in recent years has cracked down on the smuggling of weapons and drugs, including amphetamine-like stimulant Captagon, along its 375-kilometre border with Syria.