Saudi News Agency: Oman Joins Saudi-led Coalition

News agencies, citing Saudi state media and regional officials, report that Oman, a country with close ties to Tehran, has informed Saudi Arabia of its intention to join the military coalition led by Riyadh in a letter. The coalition, established last year with the participation of 40 countries, was created, according to Saudi officials, to combat terrorism. Saudi Arabia, Iran's main regional rival, stands against Iran in several significant wars and conflicts in the region and the world, from Syria to Yemen. Riyadh's allies, particularly in the Gulf region, also play an active role in this alignment. The Saudi news agency reported that Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, received a letter from Oman's Minister of Defense, in which Muscat's decision to join the Arab coalition was mentioned. According to Bloomberg News, Mohammed bin Salman is expected to travel to Oman in the coming weeks to prepare for King Salman’s visit to Oman. Reuters also published a similar report citing Saudi officials and countries around the Gulf. One of these officials told Reuters that "Oman has historically pursued positions and policies that have not aligned with the positions of Gulf Arab countries regarding the region." This unnamed Arab official added that the letter from Oman's Minister of Defense to Riyadh "indicates that Muscat has decided to return to the consensus of Gulf Arab countries against Iran's political positions." Another official also told the same news agency that Oman decided to change its position after observing a "lack of seriousness and benefit" in cooperating with Iran. These statements from Arab officials have not been confirmed by any official in Oman. Bloomberg News quoted Ghanem Nuseiba, the founder of a consulting group in London, stating that such a potential "return" would politically be considered "a win for Saudi Arabia" and would give Riyadh "greater influence in the region." Previously, Oman's Minister of Defense, Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, had stated in an interview with the Egyptian newspaper Al-Akhbar that every country has "its usual interests with other countries, but each follows its own path to achieve these goals and interests." Traditionally, Oman has been seen as a country that takes a neutral stance amid the rivalries and tensions between Iran and other Arab countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia. Muscat also has close relations with Tehran and is considered one of the most important political "mediators" between Iran and some Arab countries as well as the United States. Oman played a role in the negotiations between Iran and the U.S. to reach a nuclear agreement, and part of the negotiations involving Catherine Ashton, John Kerry, and Mohammad Javad Zarif also took place in Muscat. The recent report regarding the letter from Oman's Minister of Defense to his Saudi counterpart comes as Iran's Minister of Defense stated in an interview with a Russian network that Tehran opposes Saudi Arabia joining the Syria negotiations among Tehran, Moscow, and Ankara. Additionally, previous reports indicated that Iran had used Omani territory to send weapons to the Houthis in Yemen. Iran has denied sending weapons to Yemen. At that time, Oman's Minister of Defense stated in an interview with a Saudi newspaper that such claims are not true: "We want this issue (the non-use of Omani territory) to be completely clear to our Saudi brothers." The Saudi-led coalition is currently conducting attacks in Yemen against Houthi rebels. These attacks have faced severe criticism from international human rights organizations due to the high number of civilian casualties. In this context, Reuters reported an increase in Iran's actions in sending weapons to the Houthis via Oman, stating that "four ships carrying Iranian weapons destined for Yemen" have been seized in the past 18 months. Human Rights Watch criticized the suppression of civil activists in Arab countries, and there are mutual accusations from Iran in response to attacks by Arab countries. An Iranian military official emphasized the need to establish a naval base in Syria and Yemen.