Tuesday 16 / April / 2024
Washington: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said has been hailed by 'The Newsweek' for his role in preserving regional security and stability.
The magazine affirmed that the stability of Oman has helped His Majesty the Sultan act as a broker between opposing sides. Beginning in 2012, the country hosted both Iran and the US in its capital, Muscat, several times which helped conclude nuclear deal with Iran.
Read also: Oman ‘helped’ clinch historic United States-Iran nuclear deal
The report published by the magazine on its website described the Sultanate as 'an oasis for peace in the Middle East'.
It added that "The Sultanate has managed to avoid being sucked into the sort of conflict that has blighted nearly every other country in the Middle East. Oman has managed to stay out of disputes, maintaining good relationships with Western allies and other Middle Eastern countries'.
It pointed out that the Sultanate has managed to fend off terrorism threats. In 2015, the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and Political Violence at London’s King’s College found that not a single Omani had joined the more than 20,000 foreign fighters battling along with the IS.
It pointed out that in November, the Sydney-based Institute for Economics and Peace released its annual Global Terrorism Index, which assesses the impact of terrorism on 163 countries on a scale of zero to 10. Just 34 countries scored zero. Oman was the only country in the Middle East among that grouping.
It also said that tolerance for all religions has proved crucial to Oman’s stability. Under the constitution, people of all faiths are free to practice their religion, provided that it doesn’t disturb the public order.
The magazine also said that Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, an associate fellow of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at the UK-based think tank Chatham House said "Sultan Qaboos is very keen not to interfere in regional conflicts and adopts a neutral course.
