Jordan's King Abdullah to visit Oman

Kingdom is seeking to deepen ties with Gulf countries, state TV in Amman says

King Abdullah II of Jordan will visit Oman on Tuesday as the kingdom seeks to deepen ties with Gulf countries. AFP

Jordan’s King Abdullah will travel to Oman on Tuesday on an official visit, state TV in Amman said, as the kingdom seeks to deepen ties with Gulf countries.

The king and Sultan Haitham Bin Tariq Al Said will discuss "established brotherly relations" and regional developments, according to the report.

Jordan and Oman are close US allies, and both have military pacts with Washington.

Oman has also friendly ties with Tehran. Jordan, despite its reservations about expansion of Iranian proxies in Syria, steers away from directly criticising Iran.

Over the past decade, security ties between Jordan and Oman have strengthened, with King Abdullah praising the Sultanate for mediating disputes in the region. Jordan has military advisers in Oman, while Omani troops have participated in US supervised military drills in the kingdom.

The two countries share “a middle, peaceful and balanced course," the report said. It said Queen Rania will accompany the king on the two-day visit.

Bilateral ties improved "noticeably" since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1972, which “serve security and stability in the region", the report said.

Jordan's ties in the Gulf

Jordan's most extensive ties in the Gulf have been forged with the UAE. In 2019, Jordan restored full diplomatic ties with Qatar, which were downgraded in response to the rift between Qatar on one side and the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain on the other.

The six Gulf Cooperation Council countries employ most of Jordan's expatriate labour.

The latest available official data from 2018 shows that 61 per cent of the 800,000 Jordanians working abroad reside in Saudi Arabia, followed by the 14 per cent in the UAE, 13 per cent in Qatar and six per cent in Oman.

Official media quoted the king as telling loyalist political figures on Sunday that Jordan "will continue its moves in the upcoming period for (solving) regional issues and activating economic cooperation".