Jordan’s king receives first call from Syria’s al-Assad in decade

Syrian state news agency says the two discussed bilateral relations and ‘reinforcing cooperation’.

Jordan’s King Abdullah II received a call on Sunday from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the palace said, the first conversation between the two leaders after a decade of strain over Syria’s war.

The call comes days after Amman opened its border with Syria, amid efforts aimed at boosting cooperation between the two countries, which are facing challenging economic conditions.

The Jordanian royal court said the leaders discussed relations between the “brotherly countries and ways to enhance cooperation between them”.