Oman's Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi on Saturday described Israel, rather than Iran, as the principal source of regional instability, and encouraged fellow Gulf countries to engage with Tehran rather than isolate it.
Mr Al Busaidi said the five rounds of indirect US-Iran nuclear negotiations mediated by his country had made substantial progress before they were sabotaged by Israel. Three days before the sixth round of talks was set to take place in June, Israel “unleashed its bombs and missiles in an illegal and deadly act of sabotage”, he said.
Negotiations between Washington and Tehran were aimed at reaching a new deal that would rein in Iran's nuclear programme, but talks collapsed when the 12-day war with Israel broke out. The US also intervened and carried out strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
“This was shameful, but unfortunately, it was not surprising. We have long known that Israel, not Iran, is the prime source of insecurity in the region,” Mr Al Busaidi told the IISS Manama Dialogue in Bahrain.
A ceasefire last month ended just over two years of Israel's devastating war in Gaza and another shaky truce is in place with Hezbollah in Lebanon. Israel has also carried out attacks on Syria, Yemen and Qatar.
“Israel's deliberate efforts to prolong tensions have, in this case, killed hundreds of Iranian civilians. But Iran responded with remarkable respect, just as it had when Israel bombed its consulate in Syria, injured its ambassador in Lebanon and assassinated a leading Palestinian negotiator in Tehran,” he said.
“Over the years, the GCC has at best stepped back and permitted the isolation of Iran. I believe this needs to change, and it needs to change now,” the Foreign Minister added.
In a session titled Securing the Gulf: Diplomacy, Economics and Defence, the shadow war between Iran and Israel and its repercussions on an already volatile region took centre stage. Mr Al Busaidi said the Gulf should engage Iran as well as Iraq and Yemen – where strong Iranian influence persists – directly to bolster regional security.
He advocated “inclusive dialogue” and “engagement”, rather than “containment” with Iran. Oman has been a key interlocutor between Iran and other powers on issues related to the nuclear issue and proxies such as the Houthis in Yemen.
Israel's strikes on Hamas leadership in Qatar in September were an unprecedented attack on a Gulf state, prompting a united show of solidarity between the GCC countries, and strong condemnation of Israeli actions. Israeli settler expansion in the Palestinian territories and threats to annex more territory have also sparked stronger language.
Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani said in the same session that “a secure and prosperous Gulf, and Middle East, will remain an elusive goal unless the Palestinian people achieve their legitimate right to an independent and sovereign state”.
A fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza continues to hold, although challenges persist, particularly around postwar governance and Hamas disarmament. Many fear that violations of the agreement by both sides and deep mutual distrust could derail the truce.
Greece’s Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis said during the session that the security of the Gulf is not just regional but global, with “energy, technology and lives” relying on it.
