Oman's foreign minister, Badr Al Busaidi, has called for a security and economic pact between the Arab Gulf states and Iran, also taking in Iraq and Yemen, The National reports.
Speaking during a visit to the UK on Wednesday, he said a Gulf security arrangement that left out Iran would be inherently unstable, and that the region had relied too long on outside powers. He first set out the idea in a lecture at the University of Cambridge on Monday, saying the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz had become impossible to resolve on current terms.
He said the US could remain a partner through investment rather than a military role. Mr Al Busaidi blamed US air strikes on Iran in February for setting off the war. Iran and the Houthis in Yemen have since attacked energy sites and infrastructure across the Gulf.
Source: The National
