A country apart

THE term khususiyya is often cited by monarchs in the Gulf to justify their ways. They use it to mean the unique character of a culture, and also to dismiss demands for political and social reform. Like the idea of exceptionalism in America, khususiyya has become a cliché in the Middle East. But in Oman, many believe that it helps explain the country’s independent foreign policy.

Sitting at the south-eastern tip of the Arabian peninsula, Oman is surrounded by countries locked in a sectarian cold war and prone to meddling in each other’s affairs. But the little sultanate has a policy of non-intervention, and in turn expects its own sovereignty to be respected.

Take its relationship with the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC), of which it is a member. Oman has resisted efforts to turn the six-nation block into a political and economic union, which it fears would be dominated by the Saudis. It has opted out of the group’s military adventures too, despite having once proposed a unified army. Oman’s well-equipped soldiers did not join other GCC forces in crushing protests in Bahrain (another member) in 2011; nor has it joined air strikes in Syria or Yemen.

Oman cannot ignore its neighbours altogether, in part because most have more oil. Oman relies on the black stuff for around 80% of its income, so it has criticised Saudi Arabia for keeping prices low and prodded members of OPEC to cut output unilaterally. (Oman is not a member of the cartel.) It also leant on GCC aid in order to deliver more jobs and higher salaries in response to protests in 2011.

More recently it has bolstered its friendship with Iran. Sultan Qaboos (pictured), Oman’s authoritarian leader, turned to Iranian troops to help put down a communist-backed rebellion in the province of Dhofar in the mid-1970s. Now he intends to rely on Iranian gas as Oman’s reserves dry up: a pipeline is planned that would supply Oman and allow it to export some.

Oman is reportedly a source of some of the contraband smuggled into Iran, but that illicit trade may end and be replaced with more lucrative legitimate commerce if Iran is able to reach a nuclear deal with the West. The negotiations over an accord can be traced back to Sultan Qaboos’s successful effort to broker the release in 2011 of American hikers arrested by Iran. He then offered secretly to host meetings between officials from the two countries. Those talks led to an interim nuclear deal in 2013.

Omanis take pride in their country’s role as mediator. The sultan supported Egypt’s pursuit of peace with Israel over objections from other Arab countries. Now Oman is pushing for peace in Yemen, with which it shares a long and closely watched border.

Yet the greatest threat to Omani stability may come from within the country. For eight months beginning in July of last year Sultan Qaboos received treatment for an undisclosed illness in Germany, forcing Omanis to imagine life without him. It is not easy. He has ruled for 45 years, has no heir and holds every important position in government. Oman’s next ruler may struggle to gain legitimacy, while facing demands for reform from an increasingly young population. Stability abroad may be the least of the new sultan’s concerns.