Iraq and Jordan have discussed establishing a free trade zone between the two countries, alongside wider cooperation in energy, investment and trade, during an expanded session in Amman co-chaired by Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi and Jordanian Prime Minister Jafar Hassan, Iraq's Prime Minister's Office said.
Source: Iraq Business News
Al-Zaidi described Jordan as a strategic partner and emphasised the importance of a free trade zone to increase economic integration and mutual benefit, the Prime Minister's Office said. The talks capped a day in Amman in which the two governments signed nine memoranda of understanding and executive programmes, Shafaq News reported.
The nine agreements range from fighting monopolies and protecting consumers to environmental cooperation and support for small and medium-sized businesses, Shafaq News said. Others will expand university and research partnerships through 2031 and set out cultural and educational exchanges over the next two years.
Source: Shafaq News via Hatha Alyoum
Al-Zaidi also met King Abdullah II and told him Iraq now sees itself as "a meeting point for all," Shafaq News reported. The king said Jordan wants closer ties with Iraq across politics, the economy and development, and supports Baghdad's efforts to bring stability to the region. Amman is the latest stop on a regional tour that took al-Zaidi to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait earlier this month; he is due in Lebanon and Syria this week.
Speaking to Iraqi businesspeople and investors in Amman, al-Zaidi said work on extending Iraq's Development Road project would begin in early 2027, alongside plans to bring the Grand Faw Port to full commercial operating capacity, his office said. The $17 billion project aims to connect the southern port to Turkiye and onward to Europe through a 1,200-kilometre rail and highway corridor.
Yaani: $17 billion is about Rs 1,60,000 crore — Rs 1.6 lakh crore — roughly the scale of building a dozen big expressways, for a corridor meant to carry Gulf-to-Europe trade through Iraq instead of around it.