Trump meets Jordan's King Abdullah and reveals 'lot of progress' made on peace process

US president Donald Trump hosted King Abdullah II of Jordan on Monday for an hour-long meeting that discussed the peace process, de-escalation efforts in Syria and boosting aid and bilateral ties with Amman.

In their third summit since Mr Trump took office, King Abdullah and Queen Rania received a warm reception at the White House.

Mr Trump voiced optimism on the peace process. “We’re doing very well in the Middle East. A lot of progress has been made...and it really started with the end of the horrible Iran deal,” he said.

“That … was a disaster, and things are a lot different since we ended that.”

The president thanked King Abdullah whom he called “a friend” and lauded his “incredible work” on humanitarian efforts and the issue of refugees.

Jordan hosts more than 1.3 million refugees, mostly those who have left neighbouring Syria since the war started in 2011.

King Abdullah returned the compliment by praising Mr Trump’s “humility”.

“If the rest of the world just took a little bit of your humility and your grace to help us, we would be in a lot better position” he said.

Mr Trump who is rarely associated with humility, basked in the moment, telling reporters “remember he used the word ‘humility’ with respect to me. I’m happy with that word. It’s probably the nicest compliment I have received in a long time.”

Bilateral ties, the situation in Southern Syria bordering Jordan and the peace process topped the agenda of the White House meeting. Following economic protests and a change in government this month, the king is seeking US support and expansion in trade and aid from Washington.

Last February, the Trump administration approved increasing the annual aid to Jordan to $1.3 billion, and King Abdullah met the secretaries of Treasury and Commerce on Friday to discuss economic initiatives.

On Syria, the meeting came as signs of continuation of the de-escalation agreement between the US, Jordan and Russia is taking shape, to avoid a wide military confrontation in South Syria.

The US embassy in Jordan has reportedly issued a statement telling rebels that it is committed to the de-escalation and will offer air support against the Assad regime.

On the peace process, Mr Trump’s optimism follows a week of meetings for his adviser Jared Kushner and envoy Jason Greenblatt in the region where they visited Jordan, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Qatar. Mr Kushner said in an interview with the Palestinian paper Al Quds that the US peace plan is “almost done” and touted regional support behind the push.

On Monday as well, Israeli channel I-24 reported that the US administration has “quietly frozen its aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA) pending review” and in accordance with the Taylor Force Act that Congress passed in March.