The Holy See’s expansion with the Muslim-majority Arab nations continues
Archbishop Gabriele Caccia (left) and Oman Ambassador Mohammed Al Hassan. (Photo: Vatican News)
The Vatican established diplomatic ties with the Sultanate of Oman, the Vatican said on Feb 23, which many see as part of the Church's widening links with Muslim-majority Arab nations.
The full diplomatic ties aim at “promoting mutual understanding and further strengthening friendship and cooperation,” the Vatican said in a statement on Feb. 23.
The Holy See and Oman expressed their conviction “that the establishment of diplomatic relations serves the common interests” of both nations, the press statement said.
Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, Holy See’s Permanent Observer to the United Nations, and Mohammed Al-Hassan, ambassador extraordinary of the Sultanate of Oman to the United Nations, signed the agreement in New York City, Vatican News reported.
The territory of Oman is part of the Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia, with headquarters in Abu Dhabi, entrusted to the pastoral care of Capuchin Archbishop Paolo Martinelli.
Oman has four parishes and 12 priests.
The Church “through [its] priests and religious” hoped to “continue to contribute to the social welfare of the Sultanate [of Oman],” the press statement said.
With the inclusion of Oman, the Holy See now has a full diplomatic relationship with 182 nations. In addition to these, the Holy See has full diplomatic relations with the European Union and The Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
The Holy See also has relations of a special nature with Palestine.
Among the Asian nations, the Vatican does not have full diplomatic relations with Afghanistan, Bhutan, North Korea, Laos, Vietnam, Brunei, and Saudi Arabia.
Pope Francis visited Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates in 2019 and Bahrain in 2022.
The opening of a contact channel with Oman happened in 2017, after Indian Salesian priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil was abducted in Yemen in 2016, and was released after 18 months of imprisonment.
Oman played a crucial role in freeing Father Uzhunnalil and has maintained balanced relations with all parties to the conflict in Yemen and already has secured the release of several people abducted or missing from the war-torn country, media reports said.
The Sultanate of Oman is located in the southeastern part of the Arabian Peninsula, bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest, and the Arabian Sea.
Oman is an institutional monarchy with a basic law that declares Islam as the state religion and Sharia as the main source of legislation.
However, the freedom of religion is permitted within the law.
Oman has a population of around 4.5 million who live in an area of approximately 310,000 square kilometers, made up of mainly Arabs. There is also a significant percentage of foreign workers from Asian countries like the Philippines, India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan in Oman.
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