King Salman, Sultan Haitham discuss bilateral ties, region
Saudi King, Sultan of Oman witness signing of MOU regarding the establishment of the Saudi-omani Coordination Council; Sultan of Oman’s visit to Saudi Arabia enhances consultation, and joint co-operation: GCC secretary-general
Sultan Haitham Bin Tariq Al Said of Oman visited Saudi Arabia on Sunday on his first official foreign trip since assuming power last year.
Sultan Haitham arrived in the Red Sea city of Neom for a two-day visit.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz greeted Sultan of Oman at the the tarmac of the Neom Bay Airport and guided him down a long lavender carpet for meetings with King Salman at the palace.
Ater Sultan Haitham disembarked the aircrat, Saudi jets performed an air show painting the colours of the Omani flag, while Saudi artillery fired 21 rounds to welcome the Sultan.
Later, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman Bin Abdualaziz received and welcomed the Sultan and his accompanying delegation at the Neom Palace, where they held a session of official talks.
Sultan Haitham expressed his happiness to visit the Kingdom and meet King Salman.
During the meeting, the two leaders reviewed brotherly relations, and discussed prospects for joint cooperation and ways to enhance and develop it in various fields. Saudi King and Sultan of Oman witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding regarding the establishment of the Saudi-omani Coordination Council.
A high-ranking Omani medal for King Salman and a necklace of King Abdulaziz for Sultan Haitham were presented during the ceremony.
King Salman also held a luncheon banquet in honour of Sultan Haitham.
Saudi Arabia and Oman will establish a joint council to oversee several agreements, Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi had told the Saudi-owned Asharq Alawsat newspaper on Saturday.
He said the opening of a delayed new road linking the two Gulf states would facilitate logistics and other infrastructure projects.
The Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Dr Nayef Falah Mubarak Al Hajraf hailed the current Sultan of Oman Haitham bin Tarik’s visit to Saudi Arabia as a reflection of the brotherly Riyadh-muscat relations and a historic opportunity to enhance bilateral ties in all fields.
In a statement today to mark the event, Al
Hajraf noted that Sultan Haitham’s visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, his first official foreign trip since assuming office in January 2020, enhances consultations and complementary cooperation between the two Arab countries to serve the interests of the Saudi and Omani brotherly people.
The two-day visit, in all its royal pomp and pageantry, is rare for an Omani leader. Sultan Haitham ascended the throne ater the death of the long-ruling Sultan Qaboos Bin Said
The 65-year-old former culture minister’s reign has so far spanned the pandemic’s fallout.
Oman will ban travel between all its governorates from July 25 to Aug. 8, a period that includes Eid Al Adha holidays, to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus.
A statement from the Health Ministry described the measure as a “total lockdown” of all governorates.
The country will also implement a daily curfew from 7:00 pm to 6:00 am during the period, which includes the Muslim Eid Al Adha holiday period.
Shops and public spaces will be closed during the hours of curfew.
Oman introduced lockdowns in March in some regions such as Muscat, Dhofar, Duqm and some tourist towns.
Since April, it has gradually allowed commercial centres to reopen and lited the lockdown in the Muscat region, which includes the capital.
Air and land borders have been closed, except for repatriation. Recently, the government said it would start allowing citizens fly abroad ater applying for permission.
The sultanate, which shares borders with Yemen, has intensified diplomatic efforts aimed at securing a ceasefire between Yemen’s Iranaligned Houthi movement and the Saudi-led coalition that has been batling the group for more than six years.
Talks between the coalition and the Houthis are focused on steps to lit a blockade on Houthi-held ports and Sanaa airport in return for a promise from the Iran-aligned group for truce talks.