The Presidents of the European Council, António Costa, and of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, travel to Amman on Thursday 8 January for the first-ever EU-Jordan summit, to be held in the presence of King Abdullah II.
“Our first bilateral summit will be an excellent opportunity to strengthen our partnership and address common challenges in these troubled times”, highlighted Mr Costa in a Council press release.
The leaders will discuss bilateral relations and, in particular, the implementation of the EU-Jordan Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership, which is marking its first anniversary (EUROPE 13568/19). In December 2025 (see EUROPE 13774/11), the European Parliament adopted the European Commission’s proposal to grant Jordan a fifth macrofinancial assistance package of €500 million to help consolidate its public finances and meet its external financing needs (see EUROPE 13694/22).
The leaders will also look at the international situation. In particular, they could discuss the Middle East and Syria, as Jordan is reportedly still hosting 600,000 Syrian and Palestinian refugees (see EUROPE 13661/18). Jordan is also the ‘custodian of the holy sites’ in Jerusalem. The war in Ukraine will also be discussed (see other news).
Following their visit to Amman, the European leaders will travel to Syria for the first time since the fall of Bashar al-Assad to meet President Ahmed al-Sharia and deepen political and economic ties with the country. They will then travel to Lebanon for talks with President Joseph Aoun on the country’s prosperity, security and stability. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)