Oman calls for Gulf, Iraq and Iran to unite under one security pact

Oman is proposing one inclusive, regional security agreement covering the Gulf states, Iraq, and Iran. Its central commitment would be non-aggression: members would reject attacks against one another and cooperate on shared security concerns. Oman says this could reduce dependence on external powers.

The proposal responds to disputes involving Iran, Gulf security, the nuclear issue, and the Strait of Hormuz. Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi argued that outside powers still define the terms of engagement. Regional governments, he said, have not yet taken collective responsibility for their own security arrangements.

The pact remains a proposal, not an established agreement. Oman called for a new regional dialogue before other solutions are imposed. It also suggested that external relationships, including with the United States, could gradually focus less on military commitments and more on economic and investment partnerships.

The proposed pact would include the six Gulf countries named in the article: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, and Oman. It would also include Iraq and Iran. Oman presents this as an inclusive arrangement rather than one designed to exclude or isolate Iran.

The proposal brings together countries with different political relationships and recent security concerns. Badr al-Busaidi said Gulf security cannot be made stable by treating Iran as the region’s defining threat. He argued that Arab and Persian communities have lived in peace around the Gulf for centuries, despite existing problems.

No agreement has been announced. The proposal comes during intense diplomacy involving Iran and regional powers. Oman wants the countries concerned to take responsibility for their own security, while leaving room for future external partnerships that emphasize investment and economic cooperation rather than military commitments.

Oman’s proposal would bring together nine countries. Six are Gulf states: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, and Oman. The other two are Iraq and Iran. Together, they form the regional group Oman wants to place inside one security framework.

Politically, the grouping combines the six Gulf countries with Iraq and Iran, rather than limiting security cooperation to the Gulf states alone. Geographically, it covers countries around or closely connected to the Gulf region. This wider membership is central to Oman’s argument that security arrangements excluding Iran would be unstable.

The nine-country pact does not yet exist. Oman is calling for regional dialogue and collective responsibility. Its proposal emerged while diplomatic activity around Iran increased and regional powers discussed ending the Israeli-US war against Iran and creating a security framework independent of Washington.

Oman argues that Iran must be included because it is a major regional power connected to Gulf security. Badr al-Busaidi said that any security architecture excluding Iran would be “inherently unstable” and “structurally unsound.” In his view, security cannot be durable if one central regional country is left outside.

He described the idea of fundamental antagonism between Iran and the Arab Gulf states as a false perception imposed from outside. That assumption, he said, produced an unstable regional system. He also noted that Arabs and Persians have lived in peace in the Gulf for centuries, although problems still exist.

The argument has become more urgent during the conflict described in the article. Gulf countries faced economic and security costs after attacks linked to the war. Oman therefore wants direct regional dialogue, rather than arrangements shaped mainly by external powers or exclusion.

The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow maritime passage at the entrance to the Gulf. It connects the Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the wider ocean. Because large volumes of energy and other goods move through such a confined route, disruption can quickly affect international trade and prices. This geographic explanation is established world knowledge; the article refers to the “Hormuz issue” and its global economic effects.

The article says an ongoing blockade of the Strait’s economic repercussions have reverberated worldwide. It links the issue to the nuclear dispute, regional conflict, and security arrangements. External powers have continued to define the terms of engagement, while regional states have struggled to agree on collective security.

The wider conflict has already threatened the global economy. The article reports that Gulf countries suffered serious costs, including market losses and canceled flights. Oman argues that a regional pact could help address these risks through dialogue, inclusion, and shared responsibility.

The article describes heavy economic and security costs for Gulf countries. Since the US and Israel launched their war on Iran on 28 February, Gulf Arab states expressed frustration that the United States did not provide protection against retaliatory Iranian attacks. Iran had targeted US military bases in the region.

The economic damage was especially visible in the UAE. By late March, more than $120bn had been wiped from the market capitalization of the Dubai and Abu Dhabi stock exchanges. Over 18,400 flights were canceled. The article also says the conflict and the threatened blockade of the Strait of Hormuz produced worldwide economic repercussions.

These costs strengthened Oman’s case for regional responsibility. Busaidi said Gulf countries could no longer rely fully on external partners. He called for a non-aggression pact and dialogue, while suggesting outside relationships should gradually involve fewer military commitments and more investment.

A collective-security agreement is a shared arrangement in which countries coordinate to protect regional peace and respond to threats. A non-aggression pact is narrower: its members promise not to attack one another and may establish dialogue or other ways to prevent escalation. Together, these tools can create predictable rules among neighboring states.

Countries may use such agreements when outside protection is unreliable, costly, or shaped by outsiders’ priorities. In this article, Oman says external powers continue defining engagement on the nuclear and Hormuz issues. It wants regional governments to take collective responsibility and build security arrangements that include all relevant neighbors.

The proposed pact is not yet in force, so its effectiveness remains untested. Oman says external partnerships would still continue, but with less emphasis on military commitments and more on economic and investment ties. The immediate next step it calls for is a new regional security dialogue.