Remarks by His Majesty King Abdullah II On the Occasion of Ramadan Iftar with the Jordan Armed Forces

In the Name of God, the Most Merciful, the Compassionate, My chivalrous brothers,

Good evening, and may God grant you good health,

I am here today to see how you are, and to tell you how proud I am of each one of you, how honoured I am to have served in this army and how proud I am of the many years that I lived with you, and among you, in every battalion, every camp and every field of the fields of honour and gallantry for which you stand as a symbol. You are always and forever a symbol of honour, bravery, sacrifice and belonging.

I want you to be sure that you are always in my thoughts and conscience, and that I am keen to be with you and among you every day, and on every occasion. When I am not with you, I am always busy working for you and for your kin and brothers, the Jordanian people, who deserve whatever we can do for them, and that we complete the building process of this homeland and all that we own, for which we are ready to sacrifice our souls and blood.

As for you, comrades-in-arms, the chivalrous members of the Arab Army and the Security Institutions, you are the source of our pride. To you we convey our respect and appreciation; your excellent reputation around the world adds to our pride in you.

In order that the Arab Army and the Jordanian Security Institutions remain, as they have always been, a model in competency and efficiency in executing their duties and shouldering their great responsibilities, we are dedicated to providing them with the most modern weaponry and to diversifying the sources they come from. You have already received some of this new weaponry. There are comprehensive plans for modernisation and development in all our military units and formations, in the armaments, administration and training. There are also plans and projects to raise the standard of living of the families of the members of the Armed Forces and the Security Institutions, males and females, whether they be on active duty, retirees or martyrs, by providing them, primarily, with decent housing. This will be over and above the plans and projects which the Armed Forces will implement in the fields of training and rehabilitation of the Jordanian youth, to reduce and limit the challenges of poverty and unemployment in all governorates.

My chivalrous brothers,

On this occasion, I want to salute with pride your brothers and colleagues in the United Nations Peacekeeping Forces, who raise Jordan's flag and bring honour to Jordan's name throughout the world; I wish them and the homeland many happy returns of the day.

I know that challenges and dangers around us are grave. We must have the highest readiness to stand up to these challenges and attendant dangers. We must protect our homeland, and maintain security and stability which are the greatest blessings of this country.

You know that this country has always managed to live, move forward and realise great achievements, in spite of the challenges and dangers that have surrounded it. I urge you to always keep your morale high, and I want you to be sure that this country, with the resolve of its sons and daughters and with your chivalrous determination, will always be stronger than any challenges, stronger than any condition. With God's help, our flag will always wave high.

Again I salute you with pride. I express to you my warmest congratulations on the holy month of Ramadan and on the Eid to every soldier and officer in our Armed Forces and Security Institutions.

Many happy returns for you and for the homeland.