Jordan denies King Abdullah said Turkey 'exports terrorists' to Europe

Jordan has dismissed claims that King Abdullah II accused Turkey of “exporting terrorists to Europe” and said that relations between the Amman and Ankara remained strong. 

“Turkey-Jordan relations are historic and based on mutual respect principle,” Jordan’s information minister and government spokesperson Mohammed Mumuni said on Tuesday. 

The comments appear to be in response to a Middle East Eye report last Friday that revealed controversial statements made by King Abdullah. 

MEE reported that during a meeting in January in Washington with American congressional leaders, Abdullah said “the fact that terrorists are going to Europe is part of Turkish policy and Turkey keeps on getting a slap on the hand, but they are let off the hook”.            

However, Mumuni told semi-official Anadolu Agency on Sunday that “this kind of news is devoid of the minimum of vocational professionalism". 

Abdullah’s remarks about Turkey were made to Congressional leaders in the week of 11 January and were detailed in a confidential account of the meeting obtained by MEE from a source close to the discussions.

The Guardian also reported Abdullah’s accusation that Turkey is exporting terrorists to Europe, along with a slew of other news agencies, including The Independent.

Turkey has often been accused by Western media of not being tough enough with groups like IS, although Ankara has always denied offering any kind of support to militants. 

Mumuni’s denial came a day before Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu travelled to Jordan for a two-day visit aimed to improving bilateral trade relations.

Davutoglu met with King Abdullah and Prime Minister Abdullah en-Nusur on Sunday and signed 10 economic agreements. He also hosted a press conference where both countries said they wanted to see an urgent end to the Syrian civil war.