Duterte in Jordan

By ARGYLL GEDUCOS

AMMAN, Jordan – President Duterte arrived here Wednes­day to begin a three-day historic visit.

Duterte arrived at 5:17 p.m. Jordan time (10:17 p.m. Wednes­day in Manila) after a four-day visit to Israel. Duterte is the first sitting Philippine President to vis­it this country and Israel.

Duterte is in Jordan upon the invitation of King Abdullah II. The President had a restricted meeting with the King at the Al Husseinieh Palace Courtyard yes­terday.

After meeting the King, Du­terte will attend a business forum to entice Jordanian businessmen to invest in the Philippines.

During his last day here Du­terte will meet members of the Filipino community at the Royal Cultural Palace before leaving for Davao City. There are around 40,000 Filipinos living and work­ing in Jordan as of 2017.

The Department of Foreign Af­fairs said that Duterte’s visit will mark historic milestones, benefit trade, and strengthen relation­ships with Jordan.

DFA Undersecretary Ernesto Abella said that Duterte’s visit will be an opportunity to return the visit of the late King Hus­sein who visited the Philippines on March 1, 1976. Hussein’s visit also marked the formal establish­ment of the diplomatic relations between Jordan and the Philip­pines.

“With Jordan, we’re elevating our relationship with the King­dom with the first ever visit of a Filipino president to Jordan on the 6th to the 8th of September 2018,” Abella said.