Relations between Amman and Damascus have taken a positive turn and Jordan is optimistic that we can continue in this direction. This was stated by the Minister of State for the Media and spokesman for the Hashemite government, Mohammed Al Momani, during an interview reported today by the Jordanian newspaper "Al Ghad". As evidence of the ties between the two countries, Al Momani recalled that Amman opposed the Arab League's decision to temporarily exclude Syria from the forum and close their respective diplomatic representations. For this reason, the Syrian and Jordanian embassies continued to work in Amman and Damascus respectively. The government spokesman also stressed the importance of the creation of the four security zones in Syria agreed by Russia, Turkey and Iran during the meeting in Astana on 3-4 May. Thanks to greater security in southern Syria, achieved with the ceasefire in the southern provinces of Sueida, Quneitra and Deraa, Al Momani added, some 30000 Syrian refugees present in the Rukban reception camp have been repatriated, while about 50000 are remained. Since the beginning of the conflict in Syria, Jordan which shares about 370 kilometers of border with Syria, the economy of the Hashemite kingdom has suffered the impact of the closure of the borders with Syria and Iraq also because it lacks natural resources. Furthermore, the economy and social balance of the kingdom have been affected by the presence of Syrian refugees, which according to the UN would be 650000, while for Amman they are around 1,4 million. On 23 August, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that the joint monitoring center in Amman, Jordan, to check the effective implementation of the ceasefire in the security zones in Syria, started its activities on the same day. The purpose of the center is to allow access for humanitarian aid and medical assistance.
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