A/HRC/13/19 Government regarded it as the duty of States, and stated that cooperation must aim at solving problems of the world without restrictions or conditions. Iraq was of the opinion that effective international cooperation would lead to reduction of poverty in the world, especially in developing countries, and that the strengthening of economic relations among countries should reduce the gaps in that area. Iraq further stated that achieving the Millennium Development Goals should be the responsibility of the entire international community and that they should be realized by providing opportunities for international partnerships and exchange of experiences in all fields. Iraq also provided its opinion on international cooperation in the fight against racism. It raised the example of the Durban conferences held in 2001 and 2009 as the first global strategy to combat racism, in which States could work together to eliminate racism and racial discrimination. In terms of obstacles in international cooperation in the field of human rights, Iraq was of the view that international relations in certain aspects were still subjected to politics dominated by power and force. Therefore, one of the challenges in international cooperation was to eradicate the pressure from States or group of States which are in dominant positions. It stated that in reality there was still a long way to go to achieve a situation of equality where international solidarity could achieve its objectives, and human rights issues should be a priority. Jordan [Original: Arabic] [11 November 2009] The Government of Jordan provided information on its treaty ratification status: it has been a member of the Human Security Network since 2001; it signed a European partnership agreement on 24 November 1997, which entered into force on 1 May 2002; and it has ratified a number of human rights conventions. Jordan also referred to its acceptance of around 1.9 million Palestinian refugees and 400,000 Iraqi refugees and the efforts to provide them with a decent standard of living despite its limited capacities in that regard. In terms of its participation in international and regional forums, Jordan provided relevant information on its permanent membership of the Asia-Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions, and stated that the Jordanian National Centre for Human Rights had hosted the fourteenth meeting in Amman. Also, on 10 August 2009, Jordan hosted a meeting in Amman, on the initiative of a group of Arab experts, to prepare the ground for an international meeting to be held in Thailand in November 2010 in relation to the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners. Jordan also noted some challenges: as the Islamic religion is the State religion and the foundation of local customs, any human rights instrument contrary to the principles of the Islamic law would therefore be socially unacceptable. In that regard, it stated that His Majesty the King of Jordan had explained in a detailed statement the truth of Islam, including Islamic principles which were also similar to human rights, such as women’s rights, freedom of religion, legitimate jihad, good citizenship of Muslims living in nonMuslims countries, just and democratic government. GE.10-10005 5