Previously fire a barrage of drones and missiles on Israel on April 13, 2024, reportedly by Iran I received a message to Washington that its response to an earlier attack on the embassy compound in Syria can be geared toward stopping a serious escalation. The message was delivered via the Arab Gulf state of Oman.
The current crisis within the Middle East is one which the authorities in Oman have tried to avoid for years. Located across the Strait of Hormuz from Iran and shut Defense and security relations with the USA and the United Kingdom, Oman recognizes that similar attacks increase the chance of a broader war that might engulf countries and armed non-state groups across the region.
This could trigger a full-scale war further escalation measures from Tehran or Jerusalem. But it could also occur through misjudgment or misunderstandingparticularly given the shortage of official bilateral channels for dialogue and de-escalation.
And that is where Oman comes into play. The Gulf state has been around for years quietly built a track record reduce regional tensions through diplomacy. It has continued to play this role because the Hamas attack on October seventh. In the months since that attack and Israel's response in Gaza sent the region into turmoil, Oman has held firm High-level dialogues with Iran, The host was British Foreign Secretary David Cameron for talks on security within the Red Sea and called for a ceasefire in Gaza.
It could now play a vital role in keeping the channel of communication open between the US and Iran because the parties attempt to ease tensions.
Stand out from regional rivalries
Together with the neighboring countries Qatar and Kuwait in addition to Switzerland what represents US interests in Iran within the absence of an American embassy – Oman has played a vital role in back-channel diplomacy.
But Oman's approach differs from that of other nations. Instead of engaging in direct conversations, it creates space for dialogue and repair as a moderator quite than an intermediary.
There are several reasons for Omani's decision to act as an intermediary. Unlike another Gulf states equivalent to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Oman doesn’t have strained relations with Iran.
Rather, Omanis keep in mind that Iran was under the Shah Support provided to Oman within the Seventies, when the Gulf state's then young recent sultan, Qaboos bin Said, fought against one Decades of rebellion within the southern province of Dhofar.
Even after the Shah was overthrown within the 1979 Iranian Revolution and replaced by a clerical regime led by Ayatollah Khomeini, Oman distinguished itself from others within the region and refused to have interaction in regional rivalries and competition for geopolitical influence Iran's relations with other Gulf states were affected.
Secret back channels
Representing a small state In a volatile region, Omani officials have created diplomatic spaces that allow them to have interaction with regional issues on their very own terms and in ways in which play to their strengths. Sayyid Badr Albusaidi, a profession diplomat who became Omani foreign minister in 2020, said: already mentioned in 2003“We are trying to use our intermediate position between larger powers to reduce the potential for conflict in our immediate neighborhood.”
In contrast to Qatar, which has caused a stir worldwide about his role as a mediator In the negotiations between Hamas and Israel, Oman is less involved in mediation and more in mediation Relief.
This is a vital distinction that Omanis have maintained on the subject of working with U.S. and Iranian officials. in addition to Representative of Saudi Arabia and Houthis through the decades-long Yemeni civil war.
Omani funding takes different forms. It may consist of passing messages and maintaining indirect communication channels between adversaries or establishing back channels and holding discreet meetings.
Little attention is paid to Qatar's mediation initiatives. equivalent to the lectures with the Taliban that gave birth to 2020 Doha Agreement for the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan.
Still, Oman's approach can produce results. In his memoirsWilliam Burns, “The Back Channel,” written after his departure from the State Department and before his appointment as CIA director by President Joe Biden, provided an in depth account of Oman's role in facilitating the back channel between U.S. and Iranian officials within the Year 2013 This led to negotiations that led to the result Nuclear take care of Iran from 2015.
That back channel began after Iranian officials relayed a message to the U.S. through Oman in 2012 proposing a gathering in Muscat, the Gulf state's capital.
Burns recalled that the top of Omani intelligence “greeted both delegations as we entered the briefing room,” “gave a few brief words of welcome and then left.”
The background channel remained secret during eight rounds of a generally constructive dialogue that marked the longest and most sustained negotiation between Iranian and U.S. officials since 1979.
Host opponents
While there’s a thaw between the US and Iran didn't lastThe Omani Back Channel highlighted several aspects which might be crucial to the success of any try and defuse tensions between seemingly implacable opponents.
The trust of each side in Omani officials was crucial, and the positive end result of the meetings increased confidence in each side' use of Omani channels.
Oman's role as a facilitator of indirect engagement between the United States and Iran became more necessary with the role of President Donald Trump Decision to withdraw the US from the nuclear take care of Iran in 2018 and the failure the Biden administration to rejoin the agreement.
Apparently the one time Oman was unwilling to tackle this role was when post-U.S. tensions rose Killing of Iranian General Qassim Soleimani in January 2020 – because Sultan Qaboos was seriously unwell. In Oman's absence, the Swiss led the return channel.
Reduce tensions
Oman has passed messages between Iranian and U.S. officials during heightened tensions because the Oct. 7 attack in Israel. In January 2024, Omani officials received delegations of senior negotiators from each countries, commuting between the representatives in separate rooms.
Even as a serious regional conflict loomed within the Middle East after Israel's suspected bombing of an Iranian embassy compound in Damascus on April 1, Oman was there to attempt to contain tensions.
On April 7, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said, Visited Oman – Providing a possibility for Omani officials to tell the U.S. and other Western officials about Iran and Tehran's considering planned his response to the attack in Damascus.
And while the present crisis within the Middle East is on a scale that Oman cannot manage alone, the flexibility of trusted intermediaries like Oman – together with Qatar and Switzerland – to maintain communication channels open is critical to reducing the opportunity of inadvertent escalation to reduce on the Iranian side and to enhance U.S. and European dialogue with Israeli leaders in in search of a peaceful solution to the standoff.
image credit : theconversation.com