The US-Oman Free Trade Agreement, which went into effect on January 1, 2009, builds on previous agreements to promote economic reform and openness. The comprehensive agreement’s duties will increase export prospects for US goods and services providers, solidify Oman’s trade and investment liberalization, and boost intellectual property rights protection and enforcement.
The FTA Joint Committee (JC), which is co-chaired by the Office of the United States Trade Representative and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of Oman, held its inaugural meeting in February 2010. Officials from both governments reviewed a wide variety of trade concerns, including Oman’s compliance with the labor and environment chapters, as well as joint initiatives in those areas.
In October 2009, USTR organized a mission to Oman to examine labor concerns to promote mutual goals under the FTA’s Labor Chapter. During the visit, representatives from the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and the Departments of Labor and State met with Oman’s Ministry of Manpower, as well as representatives from labor and business organizations and other government authorities. The trip was successful in advancing the discourse on critical labor concerns, and US officials urged Oman to continue implementing labor reforms mentioned during the FTA negotiation and implementation process.
EU-GCC
Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates) make up the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is the EU’s sixth-largest export market and an important source and destination of investment for the EU Member States.
The EU-GCC Cooperation Agreement, signed in 1988, establishes a framework for economic and political cooperation between the EU and the GCC. The deal aims to boost trade and stability in a strategically important portion of Europe’s neighborhood. A Joint Council and a Joint Cooperation Committee were established.
The EU-GCC Joint Cooperation Committee meets annually in Riyadh or Brussels to discuss trade, investment, and regional cooperation, among other topics.
The EU and the GCC established a Special Dialogue on Trade and Investment Issues in May 2017, with participation from the business sector. The dialogue focuses on trade and investment issues, as well as ways to promote greater two-way trade and investment flows. Topics covered include market access irritants, regulatory requirements, and ways to encourage greater two-way trade and investment flows.
Israel – Oman
The bilateral relations between the State of Israel and the Sultanate of Oman are known as Israel–Oman relations. Oman, in keeping with the Arab League’s stance on Israel, does not recognize the state of Israel and participated in the boycott of Israel for much of the twentieth century.
Unofficial economic contacts were formed between the two countries in 1994, but they were terminated in 2000. Netanyahu led a trip to Oman in 2018 and met with Sultan Qaboos and other senior Omani authorities. Oman’s foreign minister, Yusuf bin Alawi, stated in February 2019 that the country will not normalize relations with Israel until a sovereign Palestinian state is established. Following Sultan Qaboos’ death in 2020, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu praised him and expressed his sympathies.
Oman – Syria
Oman–Syria relations refer to the Sultanate of Oman’s relationship with the Syrian Arab Republic. Syria has an embassy in Muscat, while Oman has one in Damascus. Both are Arab League members (Syria was temporarily suspended in 2012), and despite the ongoing civil war in Syria, Oman has not closed its embassy in Syria, and the two countries maintain diplomatic relations, in stark contrast to other Arab Gulf states that have severed diplomatic ties and closed their embassies in Syria.
