Germany's Merkel to meet with Jordanian king in Amman

By Laith Juneidi, Wassim Seifeddine and Hossam Sadiq

AMMAN (AA) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel has arrived in Jordan, where she is expected to meet with King Abdullah II and top Jordanian officials.

Merkel is currently on a Middle East tour that will also bring her to Lebanon, where she will also hold talks with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

The German chancellor arrived in Amman on Wednesday evening from Berlin.

Later Thursday, King Abdullah will receive Merkel at Amman’s royal palace, where they are expected to discuss bilateral relations and regional developments.

Merkel is also expected to meet with German military personnel who are currently stationed in Jordan as part of a U.S.-led coalition tasked with fighting the Daesh terrorist group in Syria and Iraq.

The German leader will depart the Jordanian capital later today for Lebanon, where she is scheduled to hold talks with Hariri.

On Friday, Merkel will also meet with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Lebanese President Michel Aoun.

Last year, Berlin extended 370 million euros in aid to Beirut to help Lebanon deal with its refugee problem.

And since 2012, Germany has allocated some 2 billion euros in aid to Amman to support refugee camps and educational programs.