India Looks at Jordan as a Stable Anchor in West Asia

New Delhi: "The legacy of Mahatma Gandhi continues to inspire gererations." This is what King Abdullah II Ibn Al Hussein, King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan wrote after paying homage at Rajghat on Thursday morning. It is a similar legacy of non-violence and moderation that the respected Islamic voice echoed as he spoke in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a gathering of academicians, intellectuals, diplomats and media— a carefully selected audience at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi.

The title of the discourse — ‘Islamic Heritage: Promoting Understanding and Moderation' — is believed to have been selected by King Abdullah himself. He said, “We must take air waves and internet away from those who spread hatred and take lives not just with bombs, but also by spreading ignorance and misinformation.” He described it as a fight of the moderates against extremism and extremist ideology.

The Urdu translation of the King's cousin Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad's book, 'A Thinking Person's Guide to Islam' was also unveiled at the event. King Abdullah said India’s religious plurality was vital in its success against extremism.

India looks at Jordan as an oasis of stability in West Asia and hence an important partner. The two sides are looking at upping the relationship through defence cooperation signing an MoU to promote engagement in some of the 'recognised areas like training, defence industry, counter-terrorism, military studies, cyber security, military medical services, peace-keeping.'

As for Jordan, it is looking at India for its expretise in the IT sector. India will help Jordan set up a next generation Centre of Excellence in its country for training about 3,000 Jordanian IT professionals over a period of five years. The two will also engage in setting up of resource centre in India for Master Trainers in IT from Jordan.

This year has started off with India's continued delicate balancing act in West Asia. While the PM of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu visited India in January, Prime Minister Modi went to Palestine, on his way transiting through Amman in Jordan. He also visited the UAE and Oman while heading back to India and then hosted the Iranian President in mid-February.