News

17 February 2019 12:30

Comment by the Information and Press Department on Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s upcoming talks with Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs of the Sultanate of Oman Yousuf bin Alawi

329-17-02-2019

On February 18, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will hold talks with Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs of the Sultanate of Oman Yousuf bin Alawi, who will be in Russia on a working visit.

The upcoming in-depth exchange of opinions will be part of Russian-Omani regular and trust-based dialogue on a broad range of issues of mutual concern. In July 2018, Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Oman Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Al Busaidi met in Moscow with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and also held consultations with Special Presidential Representative for the Middle East and Africa and Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov.

This time, Sergey Lavrov and Yousuf bin Alawi will focus on current aspects of the further efforts to strengthen traditionally friendly bilateral relations. We believe that the consistent development of multifaceted ties is in the long-term interests of both Moscow and Muscat and serves the cause of peace and stability in the Persian Gulf and the rest of the Middle East.

The two officials will highlight the goal of enhancing mutual trade, which increased by 61.9 per cent between January and November 2018 compared to the same period in 2017 and reached $143.3 million. They will also discuss the expansion of mutual trade and the launch of joint projects in investment, energy, the development of solid minerals deposits and agriculture.

The ministers will coordinate their positions on the developments in the Middle East and North Africa, in particular the need to settle regional conflicts by diplomatic and political means through a dialogue based on mutual respect for the interests and concerns of the parties involved. In this particular case, they will discuss the Palestinian-Israeli settlement and developments in Syria, Yemen and the Persian Gulf. We are grateful to our Omani partners for their consistent support for our initiative on collective security in this strategic part of the world.

The agenda also includes talks on the coordination of Russian-Omani operations in the global oil market and their cooperation at other multilateral organisations. Since Oman is currently chairing the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Sergey Lavrov and Yousuf bin Alawi will discuss the possibility of resuming fruitful cooperation at the ministerial level of the Russia-GCC Strategic Dialogue, which our Gulf partners have suspended because of persisting problems among some GCC member states.

Bilateral relations

RUSSIA-OMAN RELATIONS

Diplomatic relations between the USSR and the Sultanate of Oman were established on September 26, 1985. In 1987, the Soviet Embassy opened in Muscat, before which our country was represented by a non-resident ambassador for two years. In 1991 Oman officially recognised the Russian Federation as the legal successor of the Soviet Union.

The countries maintain an active political dialogue and exchanges of delegations. On April 11−12, 2016, Chairperson of the Federation Council Valentina Matviyenko paid a working visit to Oman, during which she held talks with Deputy Prime Minister for the Oman Council of Ministers Fahd al-Said (who essentially has been acting as head of state since 2014), President of the State Council (upper house of the parliament) Yahya al-Manzari and Secretary General of the Foreign Ministry of Oman Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held meetings with Oman’s Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi in Muscat in December 2008, in Moscow in July 2010, in Abu-Dhabi in November 2011 and in Riyadh in November 2012 (during the first ministerial meetings of the strategic dialogue between Russia and the Gulf Cooperation Council); on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in October 2015, and on February 3, 2016, during the Russian Foreign Minister’s working visit to Oman, when Sergey Lavrov was received by Oman’s Deputy Prime Minister Fahd al- Said.

Every year the two countries hold political consultations at the level of deputy heads of foreign ministries. The last round of political consultations was held in Muscat in February 2017. Russia was represented by Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, while Oman was represented by the Secretary General of the Omani Foreign Ministry Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi. During his visit to Oman, Mikhail Bogdanov was also received by Deputy Prime Minister of Oman Fahd al-Said and Oman’s Responsible Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi.

Viktor Zubkov, Russia’s Special Presidential Representative for cooperation with the Gas Exporting Countries Forum and Chairman of Gazprom’s Board of Directors, visited Oman in April 2015, and Vice Governor of St Petersburg Oleg Markov visited the country in April 2013.

Russia and Oman enjoy productive cooperation at the UN.

The key issues for the countries’ cooperation include combating international terrorism, organised crime and piracy. The practice of Russian Navy ships, deployed for anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden, calling on the Oman port Salalah has proved to be very effective in this context.

Interparliamentary relations are being developed as well. During the talks of Chairperson of the Federation Council of Russia Valentina Matviyenko and President of the State Council of Oman Yahya al-Manzari, which were held on April 12, 2016, during Matviyenko’s working visit to Oman, the parties agreed to intensify interparliamentary relations within the framework of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, and the Group on Cooperation between the Federation Council and the Parliaments of Arab Countries.

Bilateral trade shows positive momentum, even though it remains rather low in absolute terms. In the first 11 months of 2016, Russian-Omani trade was 10 per cent higher than in the same period in 2015, and was estimated at $116 million.

Russia’s main exports are food commodities, ferrous metals and associated manufactured items, pipes, hot-rolled steel and fabricated metals, construction materials, paper and paper goods. Imports from Oman are rather limited and mostly consist of polymer products and re-exports.

Efforts to strengthen the position of Russian economic operators in Oman’s domestic market are being made as well. In 2012 the TMK Group acquired controlling interest in the Gulf International Pipe Industry mill in Sohar. The mill became the largest Russian industrial asset in the Persian Gulf region.

Several Russian companies are providing services under contracts in the oil and gas industry of the Sultanate.

At the end of 2009, Russia’s debt to the Sultanate was fully paid off.

Oman does not have an intergovernmental commission with Russia. In 2005, the Russian-Omani Business Council was established. General Director of Rosneftegaz AO Ivan Menshikov is the Chairman of the Russian side, while the President of the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry Saeed al-Kiyumi is the Chairman of the Omani side. In November 2015 and May 2016, a delegation from the Russian-Omani Business Council headed by Ivan Menshikov paid working visits to Muscat.

The legal framework for bilateral cooperation is provided by intergovernmental agreements: On Trade, Economic and Technical Cooperation (1994), On Cooperation in Science, Culture and Education (signed in 2000, has not entered into force yet), On Air Services (1993, applied provisionally); and by specialised agreements, such as the Agreement on Cooperation between the Chambers of Commerce and Industry (1994), the Agreement on Cooperation between Itar-Tass and Oman News Agency (1995) and the Agreement on Visa-Free Entrance for Persons with Diplomatic, Service and Special Passports (signed in February 2016, entered into force at the end of October 2016).

Cultural and humanitarian ties with Oman are being strengthened as well. The practice of organising tours of Russian performers in the Sultanate has yielded good results. In the first half of 2017, there were successful performances by the Rachmaninov Trio and opera singer Dmitry Khvorostovsky in Muscat. In 2017, Oman will host performances by the Eifman Ballet of St Petersburg, the Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Music Theatre, opera singer Anna Netrebko and the Alexandrov Song and Dance Ensemble of the Russian Army.

Every year the Russian Ministry of Education and Science provides scholarships for Omani students to study at Russian universities. In 2015, Director of the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute for Oriental Studies Vitaly Naumkin delivered a lecture in Muscat at the invitation of the Diplomatic Institute of Oman. In the 2016/17 academic year ten students from Oman studied at Russian universities with financial support from the federal budget.

Cooperation between Russia and Oman is advancing in the sphere of interfaith dialogue. Every year representatives from Oman take part in the international Quran recitation competition held in Russian.

Cooperation in tourism is expanding as well. The numbers of tourists travelling between the countries keep growing. Every year about 5,000 Russian tourists visit Oman.

the Sultanate of Oman

THE SULTANATE OF OMAN

The Sultanate of Oman is an Arab country in the southeastern part of the Arabian Peninsula.

Area: 309,500 square kilometres. Deserts cover 82 per cent of the country’s territory, with mountains and coastal areas making up the remaining 15 and 3 per cent of the territory respectively.

Total oil reserves: About 4 billion barrels. Proven natural gas reserves amount to 620 billion cubic metres.

Population: 4.1 million, with 2.3 million nationals (others are migrant workers).

Capital: Muscat, with a population of 1.1 million. Other large cities include Salalah, Sohar and Sur.

Political system: The Sultanate of Oman is an absolute monarchy. All legislative, executive and judiciary power is held by the Sultan (since 1970 – Qaboos bin Said Al Said). The Sultan Qaboos (born 1940) also is the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, Finance Minister, Minister of Defence and the Chairman of the Central Bank. The Sultan determines the composition of the government (consisting of 27 ministers). The government itself is headed by Deputy Prime Minister for Oman’s Council of Ministers Fahd al-Said.

Oman’s parliament, the Council of Oman, was established in 1997. It consists of two houses – the appointed upper house (Council of State) and the elected lower house (Consultative Assembly). The next elections will be held in 2019.

On October 21, 2011, Sultan Qaboos made several amendments to the Basic Statute of Oman, strengthening the authority of both houses of parliament and making changes to the succession procedure. Members of parliament were granted the authority to propose draft laws to the Sultan and appoint the Consultative Assembly’s speaker and his deputies, while the Council of Oman received the authority to supervise the activity of several ministries. Thus, the Council of Oman became not just a consultative and advisory body, but a body with the authority to propose bills, except on matters of foreign policy, defence and security.

The judicial system is based on Sharia law and the principles of English law.

Official religion: Islam. 75 percent are Ibadi Muslims, a Khawarij movement similar to Shia Islam. 15 percent of the population are Sunni Muslims, and 10 percent are Shia Muslims.

Official language: Arabic; English is widely spoken as well.

National symbols: The national emblem consists of two crossed swords with the traditional Omani dagger, the khanjar, in the middle. The national flag consists of white, green and red horizontal stripes with a red bar on the left containing the national emblem of Oman.

National holiday: November 18, birthday of Sultan Qaboos. The day of his ascension to the throne (July 23, 1970) has been widely celebrated lately as well.

Currency: Rial (equals 2.6 US dollars).

History: The Sultanate of Oman in its present-day borders consists of the territories of two former warring state entities, the Sultanate of Muscat (now the northern part of the country) and the Imamate of Oman (now the southern part of the country). In 1913, the Imamate of Oman declared its independence. The subsequent war against the Imamate of Oman, unsuccessfully waged by the Sultanate of Muscat with the support of British troops, lasted for seven years and came to an end in 1920 with the signing the Treaty of Seeb, which recognised the Imamate of Oman as a fully independent state. Soon after oil was discovered on the Imamate’s territory, the Sultan of Muscat breached the treaty by occupying the Imamate. The Imam of Oman fled to Saudi Arabia, and instability persisted in the southern part of the country. In 1962, a revolt began in the southern province of Dhofar, which was finally defeated with the help of Britain, Jordan and the Shah’s Iran only in 1975.

Economy: The country’s economy is based on the oil and gas industries (52 percent of GDP, 80 percent of exports). As of 2016, GDP amounted to $70.2 billion (1.8 per cent increase compared with 2015), per capita income is $39,900, the inflation rate is two percent. Foreign reserves are estimated at $17.5 billion. Annual foreign investment averages roughly $2 billion.

In 2016, foreign trade reached $76 billion. The main exports are oil, liquefied gas, textiles and re-exports. The main sources of imports are the United Arab Emirates (re-export), Japan, Great Britain, Italy, Germany and the US. Primary oil importers are China, Thailand, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.

Since 1970s, the Sultanate of Oman has been actively developing the oil and gas, petrochemical and mining industries. There are several free trade zones in the country. The mining and fishing industries, as well as agriculture, are being developed as well.

Domestic policy: The domestic situation is stable. The government operates a flexible domestic policy, using oil export revenues to subsidize the low-income segments of the population.

Foreign policy: In the international arena, the country pursues a balanced policy and maintains diplomatic relations with 147 countries. The Sultanate of Oman is a member of the UN (since 1971), the League of Arab States (since 1971), the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (1972), and the Non-Aligned Movement (1973). In 2008 Oman joined the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Inter-Parliamentary Union. The Sultanate of Oman is a co-founder of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (1981) and the Indian-Ocean Rim Association (1997). Oman has observer status in OPEC and OAPEC. Oman is also a member of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum since 2011, and a party to the common defence treaty of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf.

The Sultanate of Oman participates in most of the international conventions against terrorism and supports the WMD non-proliferation regime.

Armed forces: The regular armed forces consists of 50,000 members who serve on a contractual basis. The Commander-in-Chief is Sultan Qaboos (graduated from the British Royal Military Academy Sandhurst).