Niels Annen, Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office, set off yesterday on a trip to the Middle East, where he will visit Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey. Today in Lebanon, Minister of State Annen will meet the President, the new government as well as representatives of civil society. The talks will focus on the reforms urgently needed to alleviate the current economic and supply crisis.

On 6 and 7 October, Minister of State Annen will be in Jordan to meet Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and to visit the Bundeswehr contingent in Al-Azraq, which continues to play a key role in the mission to combat IS.

Minister of State Annen will conclude his trip on 8 October in Turkey, where he will hold talks on the situation in Libya, Syria, Afghanistan, the eastern Mediterranean as well as on other regional issues.