Diplomacy on the Brink: How Oman Became a Bridge Between the US and Iran

Amid the crisis around the Strait of Hormuz, Oman acts as a neutral platform for contacts between the US and Iran. The article explains the sultanate's unique position: Ibadi Islam, historical ties with Tehran, US access to military facilities, and trade with Iran. Oman previously mediated the 2015 JCPOA.

Against the backdrop of an acute military crisis around the Strait of Hormuz, the Sultanate of Oman reaffirms its status as a neutral platform for contacts between the US and Iran. The article, based on material from IsraelInfo, explains Muscat's unique position through three factors: religious-philosophical (Ibadism, equidistant from Sunnism and Shiism), historical (Iran helped Sultan Qaboos in the 1970s, ties continued after the 1979 revolution), and military-strategic (US access to the ports of Duqm and Salalah while maintaining trade with Iran). Oman previously mediated the 2015 nuclear deal. Its geographical location on the southern shore of the strait makes maintaining peace a matter of survival. The article also mentions that earlier "Kursor" wrote about Iran's ultimatum to the US.

Diplomacy on the Brink: How Oman Became a Bridge Between the US and Iran