AMMAN: News that Syrian regime troops have reached the Naseeb crossing point with Jordan has revived the hopes of thousands of Jordanian transport workers.
Khaled Mirai’, a driver working the Amman-Damascus-Beirut route, told Arab News that the past six years had been disastrous for his family.
“If the borders are open and we are certain it is safe, I will be the first in line ready to resume my work,” said Mirai’.
The driver said his income had fallen dramatically in past years.
“My financial situation went back 85 percent because of the sudden loss of work. I used to do at least one run a day from Amman to Beirut and back. On one day I did five trips between Amman and Damascus. Since the violence began we have lost our main work and have had no access to regular income. We have had to compete with thousands on the route to Saudi Arabia, which has been crowded after the Iraqi and Syrian borders closed.”
Abu Khaled, who runs the Safriat Al-Sham (Damascus Transport) in Amman’s Abdali area, said that before the civil war in Syria almost 1,000 taxis were transporting people between the two countries.
“I am also hearing that things will return, but I am not sure — it will take some time before the road is safe.”
Abu Ali Basahabshe, a truck driver who has worked on the Jordan-Syria line for years, said he expects the flow of goods to return within months.
“Jordan is the crossroads between Syria, Lebanon, Turkey and Europe to Saudi Arabia and other countries. Using the roads is much cheaper than having to send goods by sea through the Suez Canal, so I expect a speedy return of movement in both directions within months, but no later than the end of the year,” he said.
Jawad Anani, former deputy prime minister and foreign minister in Jordan, said that what is happening on the Syrian borders is good news for Jordan.
“We have been expecting this for some time. Syrians have wanted us to open the borders from our side unilaterally, but Jordan had no way of guaranteeing safe conduct for people and goods. The Syrians will be even more interested in opening things up, especially in south Syria.”
Anani, now president of the Jordan Economic and Social Council, said that both sides have an interest in the crucial land artery being open.
“For security, all sides have to make sure it is working well.”
He said that many countries have contributed to the present situation.
“Jordan’s role in ending the conflict and the meetings with Russian leadership shows that there is consensus even in the West on resuming life with Syria and opening the borders.
“I think it will not take a long time before a variety of things start moving,” he said.
“Jordanian projects in south Syria, including universities and other sectors, will soon open. Also, if the road to Damascus is open and safe, Jordanian banks will reopen in Syria, which will provide the Syrian government with badly needed signs of normalization.”
Anani said that he is certain most refugees will return to their homes once the situation is safe.
“Syria has potential on multiple levels. They have land and water, and if the area is safe, most refugees will return.”
Syrian regime’s control of Naseeb crossing offers Jordanians hope
Syrian regime’s control of Naseeb crossing offers Jordanians hope
- Jordan is the crossroads between Syria, Lebanon, Turkey and Europe to Saudi Arabia and other countries
- Jordanian projects in south Syria, including universities and other sectors, will soon open
US presses missile issue as new Iran talks to open in Geneva
- New round of negotiations in Geneva comes after the US carried out a massive military build-up in the region
- Iran’s president reiterates Tehran is not seeking nuclear weapons in line with policy
GENEVA: The United States and Iran are set to hold indirect talks in Switzerland on Thursday aiming to strike a deal to avert fresh conflict and bring an end to weeks of threats.
The new round of negotiations in Geneva comes after the US carried out a massive military build-up in the region and President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened to strike Iran if a deal is not reached.
In his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Trump accused Iran of “pursuing sinister nuclear ambitions.”
He also claimed Tehran had “already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they’re working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America.”
The Iranian foreign ministry called these claims “big lies.”
Iran president says ahead of US talks not seeking nuclear weapon ‘at all’
TEHRAN: Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian reiterated on Thursday that Tehran was not seeking nuclear weapons in line with the policy set by the country’s supreme leader.
“Our Supreme Leader has already stated that we will not have nuclear weapons at all,” Pezeshkian said in a speech.
“Even if I wanted to move in that direction, I could not — from a doctrinal standpoint, I would not be permitted.” — AFP
The maximum range of Iran’s missiles is 2,000 kilometers according to what Tehran has publicly disclosed. However the US Congressional Research Service estimates they top out at about 3,000 kilometers — less than a third of the distance to the continental United States.
The dispute between the countries mostly revolves around Iran’s nuclear program, which the West believes is aimed at building an atomic bomb but Tehran insists is peaceful.
However the US has also been pushing to discuss Iran’s ballistic missile program, as well as Tehran’s support for armed groups hostile toward Israel.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that Iran must also negotiate on its missile program, calling Tehran’s refusal to discuss ballistic weapons “a big, big problem” on the eve of the talks.
He followed up by saying “the president wants diplomatic solutions.”
Iran has taken anything beyond the nuclear issue off the negotiating table and has demanded that the US sanctions crippling its economy be part of any agreement.
‘Neither war nor peace’
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Wednesday he had a “favorable outlook for the negotiations” that could finally “move beyond this ‘neither war nor peace’ situation.”
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who is leading the Iranian delegation at the talks, has called them “a historic opportunity,” adding that a deal was “within reach.”
In a foreign ministry statement that followed a meeting with his Oman counterpart, Araghchi said the success of the US negotiations depend “on the seriousness of the other side and its avoidance of contradictory behavior and positions.”
The US will be represented by envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka.
The two countries held talks earlier this month in Oman, which is mediating the negotiations, then gathered for a second round in Geneva last week.
A previous attempt at negotiations collapsed when Israel launched surprise strikes on Iran last June, beginning a 12-day war that Washington briefly joined to bomb Iranian nuclear sites.
In January, fresh tensions between the US and Iran emerged after Tehran engaged in a bloody crackdown on widespread protests that have posed one of the greatest challenges to the Islamic republic since its inception.
Trump has threatened several times to intervene to “help” the Iranian people.
Emile Hokayem, senior fellow for Middle East security at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said that “the region seems to expect a war at this point.”
In January, there was “a big push by a number of Middle Eastern states to convince the US not to” strike Iran.
“But there’s a lot of apprehension at this point, because the expectation is that this time” a war would be “bigger” than the one in June.
Tehran residents who spoke to AFP were divided as to whether there would be renewed conflict.
Homemaker Tayebeh noted that Trump had “said that war would be very bad for Iran.”
“There would be famine and people would suffer a lot. People are suffering now, but at least with war, our fate might be clear,” the 60-year-old said.
