Gov. Wes Moore met Wednesday morning with King Abdullah II of Jordan, in the first time a foreign head of state has visited the Maryland State House on official business.
The governor and the king met for about 90 minutes with roughly two dozen government, business and education leaders from across the state. The group included executives from companies such as McCormick & Company, Marriott International, Lockheed Martin, and T. Rowe Price; leaders from Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland Medical System; Jordan’s ambassador to the United States and members of Moore’s cabinet.
The meeting was not open to the press. In a statement, the governor’s office said the group discussed “potential trade, investment, and partnership opportunities between the State of Maryland and Jordan.”
”We are very happy to know that your family has a love of Maryland cuisine, which is the best cuisine inside the entire country, but we're also honored that that this relationship goes well beyond cuisine, that this is ways to come together, to talk about common goals, to talk about common interests, and to talk about collaboration,” Moore said at the start of the meeting.
In his remarks, the king said he looked forward to creating “synergies.”
Earlier this week, Abdullah addressed the United Nations General Assembly, criticizing Israel’s actions in Gaza and calling on world leaders to protect Palestinians.