Oman: unusually assertive Reports that Sultan Qabus bin Said of Oman facilitated a secret dialogue between the US and Iran that culminated in the recent Geneva agreement, and the blunt statement by the Omani foreign minister Yusuf bin Alawi in advance of the GCC summit in Kuwait
The Gulf states, the GCC and America We have described in earlier postings the near-crisis in US/Saudi relations over disagreements on the Arab spring, Egypt, Syria and Iran, and the reaction of other Gulf states to Iran in particular.
Oman A visit by Sultan Qaboos bin Said of Omar to Iran has provoked speculation that it was an effort to mediate between Tehran and Washington. Sultan Qaboos is not a frequent traveller.
The Arab Gulf States and the social media The social media were credited with an important role in the overthrow of the regimes in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya in the Arab spring, and it is not surprising that other regimes view them with suspicion as a likely source of subversion.
