Jordanian Foreign Minister Salah Bashir conferred Wednesday with the UN Secretary General's Special Representative to Iraq, Staffan de Mistura, and renewed his country's commitment to continue extending assistance to about 500,000 Iraqis in Jordan, according to an official statement, according to DPA. "Jordan will continue to extend all forms of assistance to the Iraqi brethren until security and stability are restored in Iraq," Bashir said. However, he underscored the importance of the ongoing political process there leading to a "national reconciliation that involves all components of the Iraqi people." Bashir urged the United Nations to ensure world financial help to Jordan to enable it to cope with the growing "economic burdens" shouldered by his country as a result of the presence of such a large number of Iraqis on its soil. According to official estimates, Jordan incurred infrastructure losses amounting to two billion dollars over the past three years due to the existence of a huge Iraqi community in the country that was estimated by the Norwegian institute Fafo at between 450,000 and 500,000. During the meeting, the UN official "expressed appreciation for Jordan for its assistance that enabled various Amman-based UN agencies and offices to perform their duties towards Iraq in a proper manner," the Jordanian statement said.
