Jordan, Iraq ink security deal but still face rocky road

Jordan and Iraq have signed a military and security cooperation agreement after years of stormy ties which saw Daesh terrorists gain control of their joint border and cut vital trade to a bare minimum.

Jordan’s Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Lt. General Mahmoud Abdul Halim Freihat and Iraqi Defense Minister Irfan Mahmoud Al Hayali oversaw the signing of the agreement in Amman Sunday, Petra news agency reported.

"The agreement aims to exchange expertise and information on border protection, as well as improving intelligence capabilities and combating terrorism in all its forms," the report said. 

The two sides also agreed to increase joint military exercises, boost research and technology development and hold joint courses in security and military fields.

The vast desert Province of Anbar on the 180 km border with Jordan became a historic hotbed of the Takfiri militancy sparked by the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.

Before that Iraq was the kingdom’s main export market, accounting for almost a fifth of Jordan's exports or about $1.2 billion a year, according to the International Monetary Fund.

Last August, Jordan opened its main border crossing with Iraq for the first time since 2015 after Iraqi forces gained control of the main highway to Baghdad.

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