Saudi Arabia, Oman sign deals worth $30 bn

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Saudi Arabia signed deals with Oman valued at $30 billion, state media said Tuesday, as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman began a tour of Gulf Arab countries, including former rival Qatar.

Saudi and Omani companies “signed 13 memoranda of understanding worth $30 billion”, the official Saudi Press Agency reported.

The MoUs between the two countries, which seek to diversify their economies away from oil, range from cooperation in the energy and tourism sectors to finance and technology.

Prince Mohammed, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, arrived in Muscat on Monday night, the first stop in a regional tour ahead a Gulf Arab summit in mid-December.

According to SPA, he will also visit the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar.

Prince Mohammed’s trip to Doha will mark the first visit since Saudi Arabia and Qatar severed ties four years ago.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain cut all links with Qatar in June 2017, alleging it backed radical Islamist groups and was too close to Riyadh’s rival Tehran — allegations Doha denied.

They restored full relations with Qatar in January after a landmark summit.

The prince’s tour comes amid a flurry of diplomacy to resolve regional disputes, especially with Iran and Turkey.

There have been signs of a thaw between Saudi Arabia and Iran in recent weeks, with Tehran and Riyadh holding several rounds of talks since April aimed at improving ties.

Meanwhile, Turkey has sought to rebuild relations with former rivals in the Gulf, including the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Simmering tensions between Ankara and Riyadh escalated after the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the kingdom’s Istanbul consulate.

Prince Mohammed’s tour coincides with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Doha on Tuesday, although Qatar’s foreign minister has said it was coincidental.

The Gulf states are seeking to diversify their economies away from oil, investing heavily in recent years in the tourism, entertainment and sports sectors. (AFP)