Oman trying to reduce US-Iran tensions: foreign ministry tweet
Oman is trying “with other parties” to reduce
tensions between the United States and Iran, the Omani Foreign Ministry tweeted
on Friday.
The tweet cited Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, the
sultanate’s minister responsible for foreign affairs, who met on Monday in
Tehran with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
“There is a danger that a war breaks out, hurting
the whole world ... Both parties, the American and the Iranian, are aware of
the danger,” the tweet cited the Omani minister as saying in an interview with
an Arabic publication.
Oman maintains friendly ties with both the United
States and Iran and has previously been an important go-between for the two
countries, which severed diplomatic relations in 1980. Washington and Tehran
are in a protracted stand-off over Iran’s nuclear and missile programs.
Tensions have been building in the last few weeks.
Washington has sent more military forces to the Middle East in a show of force
against what US officials say are Iranian threats to its troops and interests
in the region since the United States reinstated a range of economic sanctions
against Iran.
President Hassan Rouhani said on Thursday that Iran
will not surrender to US pressure and will not abandon its goals, even if it is
bombed.
On Friday, Zarif lashed out at Trump during a visit
to Islamabad, assailing the American president for his tweet this week warning
Iran not to threaten the US again or it would face its "official
end."
"Iran will see the end of Trump, but he will
never see the end of Iran," Zarif said during his visit to Pakistan, where
he was thought to be seeking Islamabad's help to de-escalate the situation
Another country trying to avert a confrontation in
the region is Iraq. Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi said on Tuesday that
Baghdad would send delegations to Washington and Tehran to help reduce
tensions.
