Iran FM Meets New Sultan of Oman in Muscat

The Iranian top diplomat, who is in Oman to attend a commemorative ceremony held for the late Sultan Qaboos on behalf of the Iranian nation and government, met with the new Sultan on Sunday.

During the talks, Zarif offered condolences over the demise of Sultan Qaboos, congratulated Sultan Haitham on the beginning of his term, and expressed Tehran’s preparedness to develop and deepen friendly and historical relations between the two states.

The Iranian foreign minister will leave Muscat for Tehran in coming hours.

Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said, 65, was sworn in after Oman’s Defence Council announced he would succeed the late Sultan Qaboos as ruler of Oman.

A tweet from an Omani Government account said that he had been sworn in “after a meeting of the family” and that the decision to appoint him reflected the wishes of Sultan Qaboos.

At his swearing-in ceremony Saturday, Sultan Haitham said that “Sultan Qaboos had built a modern nation”. He vowed to “continue the journey” his predecessor had started. He also said Oman would continue the foreign policy approach adopted by the late Sultan, one based on “peaceful coexistence between nations” and on non-interference.

Sultan Qaboos shaped Oman’s policy of diplomatic balancing. Under his leadership, Oman was a facilitator of talks between adversaries Iran and the United States.

Sultan Haitham, an Oxford graduate, is a career diplomat who has spent 16 years in various foreign ministry roles since 1986. He has served in a range of official positions, including undersecretary of the ministry of foreign affairs and the secretary general for the ministry of foreign affairs, as well as minister of heritage and culture.