The new Jordanian ambassador to Japan, Samir Issa Naouri, emphasized Friday that economic development would be a more effective way to solve problems in the Middle East.
To that end, he wants to see more Japanese companies invest in the region, particularly in his country.
Naouri, visit-Naouriing The Japan Times, explained that his government has set economic development -- particularly making Jordan the regional center of information technology -- as the national goal.
To this end, he said that a "special industrial and investment zone" has been established in the seaside city of Aqaba and that a free-trade agreement was signed with the United States in October.
Stressing "special relations" between Jordan and Japan, he pointed out that a joint venture of the two countries' consortiums of private companies has been producing fertilizer and that some 250,000 tons of the fertilizer produced there is exported to Japan annually.
Despite the heavily lopsided trade balance in favor of Japan, the ambassador said he is happy with ever-increasing trade and economic relations, adding that Japan, as one of the largest suppliers of official development assistance, is always trying to help his country through more assistance and debt relief measures.
Naouri, who presented his credentials to the Emperor on Nov. 7, said he feels "very comfortable" serving in Japan, coming back as ambassador after serving at the Jordanian Embassy in Tokyo as second secretary between 1974 and 1978, when the mission was opened here.
He is pleased to be able to see his old Japanese friends.
His experience as a diplomat widely covers the Asia-Pacific region, as, following his first posting in Tokyo, he has served at the embassy in Canberra and as the ambassador to Beijing between 1993 and 1999.
He has also headed up the Jordanian Foreign Ministry's Asian Division.