BAGHDAD, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi Saturday met with his Jordanian counterpart Omar al-Razzaz at the Trebil border crossing for the implementation of cooperation agreements, a statement from Abdul Mahdi's media office said.
Earlier in the afternoon, Abdul Mahdi, heading a high delegation, met a Jordanian delegation headed by Razzaz at the Trebil port to implement pre-agreed cooperation pacts signed last December during Razzaz's visit to Baghdad.
The deals included ambitious projects such as renovating Baghdad-Amman international road and creating a joint industrial zone at the border.
"Iraqi Prime Minister Abdul Mahdi expressed his happiness for the beginning of a new phase of trade exchange between Iraq and Jordan that will benefit people of both countries," according to Abdul Mahdi's media office.
Reopening the Trebil port for freight trucks was also among the agenda discussed between the two countries in recent months. The port has long represented a vital economic artery for both countries but it was closed due to the fight against Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraq and was reopened for travelling passengers in 2017.
As part of their meeting, both Abdul Mahdi and Razzaz have signaled for freight trucks from both countries to cross through the port, the statement added.
Footage broadcasted by state-owned al-Iraqiya channel showed Iraqi and Jordanian trucks passing through the Trebil port as normal life resumed at the port.
During the meeting, Iraq also received 1,300 looted artifacts retrieved by Jordanian authorities.
"These rare artifacts, albeit Iraqi, are property of all humanity, and their return is a profit for Iraq and Jordan," the statement quoted Abdul Mahdi as saying.
Iraq and Jordan have long maintained good relations and the two sides are working to further ties especially after the full defeat of IS group in Iraq.
