Iraq has hailed Saturday's highly symbolic visit to Baghdad by the Jordanian Prime Minister. Jordan's PM Adnan Badran met Iraqi Vice-President Adel Abdul Mehdi and Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari in Baghdad to bolster relations. Badran's visit was the first by an Arab leader since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003. In a press conference after the meeting, Jaafari said: "This visit means a great deal to us and marks a great political turning point. "I call on all the Arab states to follow the Jordanian initiative. Today's visit has broken a barrier and sent a political message," he said. Badran said the two countries needed to work together to make their border more secure. "A joint security committee comprising the Jordanian interior minister and the Iraqi interior minister will be formed to study all joint security issues," Badran was quoted as saying by BBC. "The security in Iraq is important for... the security and stability of Jordan," he said. Badran said the border crossing would be upgraded to handle the massive increase in road traffic between Jordan and Iraq.
