AMMAN -- His Majesty King Abdullah discussed bilateral ties with Kuwait's Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff General Fahed Amir on Monday.

The two sides held talks regarding ways to enhance cooperation between the two countries in the military field and other issues of concern to the armed forces. They also reviewed the latest developments in the Middle East.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff General Khaled Sarayreh attended the meeting.

Amir also met with Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit and discussed cooperation between the Jordanian and Kuwaiti armed forces.

Bakhit stressed that the country's Kuwaiti community receives special attention, noting that over 2,000 Kuwaiti students study in Jordan.

Also on Monday, King Abdullah and Her Majesty Queen Rania met with Professor Glenn L. Denning, director of Millennium Villages Project in Africa, which is implemented by the Earth Institute at Columbia University, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The King highlighted the need to benefit from the long experience of the Earth Institute to design comprehensive and effective development models for local communities in Jordan, especially in the country's 20 "poverty pockets."

They also discussed Jordan's efforts to achieve comprehensive development in all fields, with the King stressing the need to address strategic challenges like water, energy, unemployment and population growth when drafting development policies.

Also present at the meeting were the King's Office Director Bassem Awadallah and CEO of the Dead Sea Institute Nadia Saeed.

The two sides discussed prospects of cooperation between the Earth Institute and the Dead Sea Institute.

Denning has spent an unspecified period of time in the country acquiring first-hand knowledge of ongoing development projects. He praised the progress Jordan has achieved in education, health and infrastructure projects.

The Millennium Villages Project is "a new bottom-up approach to lift developing country villages out of the poverty trap that afflicts more than a billion people worldwide."

Scientists and development experts in agriculture, nutrition and health, economics, energy, water, environment and information technology are working with local communities and governments to apply a proven holistic package of interventions to help villages escape extreme poverty, according to the institute's website.