Jordan fully reopens main border crossing with Syria to boost trade

Jordan has fully reopened its main border crossing with Syria in a move to boost the countries’ struggling economies. Colonel Moayad Al Zubi, the head of Jaber crossing told a news agency that the security situation is now stable on the Syrian side and they hope it remains stable. The Jaber crossing had reopened in 2018 after the Syrian government drove rebels from the south, but the COVID-19 pandemic led to measures being imposed to curb the transmission of the virus. 

Jordanian Trade and Industry Minister Maha Al Ali said that the aim of these understandings is to boost trade exchange between the two countries to achieve the interests of every party.

Meanwhile, the United States, which has



suspended its diplomatic presence in Syria in 2012, has not shown any indication of an imminent change in ties. A US  State Department spokesperson yesterday said Washington had no plans to ‘normalize or upgrade’ diplomatic relations with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and was not encouraging others to do. The spokesperson said that Assad has regained no legitimacy in their eyes, and there is no question of the US normalizing relations with his government at this time.

At least 350,209 people have been killed in the decade-old war in Syria, the United Nations human rights office has said in its first report since 2014 on the death toll, adding that the tally was an "undercount".