Muscat – H E Sayyid Badr al Busaidi, Foreign Minister, has stated that “rapprochement” between the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran provides a path to regional peace and that the recent prisoner exchange between them will lead to more dialogue and closer relations in the coming months.

H E Sayyid Badr made the comments at the Al-Monitor and Semafor Middle East Global Summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York last week.

He said that even if the process was “slow, painstaking and challenging”, it was important for Iran and the US to “maintain a momentum of trust … and de-escalation” for the good of the global economy.

The foreign minister said the Iran nuclear deal was the “best thing we have” and that experts believe “it can be done”.

Addressing concerns about Iran’s behaviour in the region, he said that Oman is “in favour of having a platform where Iran can talk bilaterally”.

He stressed that the key to security and integration in the Middle East is “to recognise that we are all part of this region, including Iran, and therefore we all have a vested interest in the future of the region”.

The summit brought together the region’s leaders, including King Abdullah II of Jordan and prime ministers of Iraq and Lebanon.

On Israel-Saudi talks, King Abdullah II said “the best deal is when everyone walks out of the table slightly unhappy”.

He added that Jordan and Egypt were working towards a successful deal but “you can’t parachute over Palestine”.

“What do the Palestinians get out of it?” he asked.

On the US administration’s goal to reduce tensions and alleviate conflict, Barbara Leaf, US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, said the Middle East “is one of the least integrated regions in the world in economic terms”.

She said one key to integration is the US efforts to persuade Saudi Arabia to normalise ties with Israel. “The road will be long and winding. It will be very complex to get there, but we believe fundamentally that it has strategic value for the US, for Saudi Arabia, for Israel, but more broadly for the region.”