Jordan and Syria to combat Islamic State group resurgence along with drug and arms smuggling

PHOTO CAPTION: Jordanian service members are seen training in Amman, Jordan, April 16, 2018. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Jack Oathout via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)

AMMAN (Reuters) -Jordan and Syria have agreed to form a joint security committee to secure their border, combat arms and drug smuggling and work to prevent the resurgence of Islamic State militants, the Jordanian foreign minister said on Tuesday.

Western anti-narcotics officials say the addictive, amphetamine-type stimulant known as captagon has for years been mass-produced in Syria and that Jordan is a transit route to the oil-producing Gulf states.

Jordan's army has conducted several pre-emptive airstrikes in Syria since 2023 that Jordanian officials say targeted militias accused of links to the drug trade, as well as the militias' facilities.

"We discussed securing the borders, especially the threat of arms and drugs smuggling and the resurgence of Islamic State. Our security is one, we will coordinate together to combat these mutual challenges," Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told a joint press conference with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani.

Shibani, who was in Amman after visiting Qatar and the United Arab Emirates following the Dec. 8 fall of President Bashar al-Assad, told Safadi that drug smuggling would not pose a threat to Jordan under Syria's new Islamist rulers.

"The new situation in Syria ended the threats posed to Jordan's security," Shibani said. "When it comes to captagon and drug smuggling, we promise it is over and won't return. We are ready to cooperate on this extensively."

Answering a question about U.S. sanctions on Syria, Shibani said the latest move by Washington to ease restrictions on humanitarian aid for Syria should be a step towards a full lifting of sanctions, which were imposed to isolate the Assad government over its deadly crackdowns on opponents.

He added that existing sanctions posed a major obstacle to the recovery of Syria from 13 years of devastating civil war.

Safadi said Jordan is ready to supply post-Assad Syria with electricity immediately and is also working to provide it with gas.

(Reporting by Nayera Abdallah and Tala Ramadan in Dubai, Suleiman Al-Khalidi in Amman; editing by Alison Williams, Timothy Heritage and Mark Heinrich)