During a meeting held by the Senate's Jordanian-Russian Friendship Committee this morning, Russian Ambassador to Jordan Gleb Desiatnikov said that over 30,000 Russian tourists visited the Kingdom this year.

He underlined keenness to develop bilateral ties to serve the interests of the two countries' peoples.

Senate President Faisal Fayez said the Jordanian-Russian relations are witnessing constant development, pointing to communications between His Majesty King Abdullah II and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

He said Jordan and Russia see eye-to-eye on many issues, most notably the Palestinian cause, ending conflicts in Syria through a political solution, and many regional and international issues.

Regarding bilateral ties, the Senate President described them as "distinguished and strategic" on the political level, calling for boosting them especially in the economic and investment fields.

On the Syrian crisis, he pointed out that his country supports all efforts aimed at restoring peace and stability to the Syrian territories, noting that Russia is working with Jordan to resolve the issue of the al-Rukban camp for Syrian refugees.

However, Desiatnikov stated that Moscow stands by Amman on the Palestinian issue, and supports the Hashemite custodianship over Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, adding that his country does not support relocating embassies to Jerusalem, denouncing Israeli plans for Jerusalem and the Jordan Valley.

The envoy also discussed economic cooperation revealing an upcoming visit of a Russian businessmen delegation specialized in the agriculture field to participate in an exhibition of Jordanian agricultural products.