WASHINGTON: The United States urged Oman Monday to show restraint and press ahead with reforms after deadly clashes in the strategic Gulf ally on the busy Strait of Hormuz oil shipping lane.
Fresh clashes erupted between Omani police and protesters on Monday, a day after police killed at least one as the turmoil rocking the Arab world reached the normally calm Gulf sultanate.
In the first US reaction to the unrest in Oman, State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said: “We have been in touch with the government and encouraged restraint and to resolve differences through dialogue.”
He expressed regrets to the families of those who have been killed in the protests.
“This is something that we continue to watch and continue to engage Oman, among other countries, to encourage dialogue and reform,” Crowley told reporters.
“We continue to encourage the government to undertake reforms that include economic opportunity and move towards greater inclusion and participation in a peaceful political process.”
Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, made a discreet visit last week to Oman, which guards the Strait of Hormuz opposite Iran’s coast, as Pentagon strategists monitor the vital waterway.
The Hormuz Strait, through which 40 percent of the world’s oil supply passes, is less than 50 kilometres (31 miles) wide, with Oman to the south and Iran to the north, and Mullen's visit underlined US determination to keep it open.
Iranian commanders have repeatedly threatened to block navigation through the strait, which links the Gulf to the Indian Ocean, if the Islamic republic comes under attack.
Western powers led by the United States suspect Iran is masking a weapons drive under the guise of a civilian atomic program, a charge strongly denied by Iran.
The United States has also urged Bahrain, another US Gulf ally which is home to the US Fifth Fleet and neighbors Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil producer, to show restraint and undertake reform after deadly protests there.
The wave of protests this year have already toppled presidents in Tunisia and Egypt, both US allies, and are calling for the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh of Yemen, a chief ally in the war against Al-Qaeda.
Ties do not appear so strong to Libyan leader Moammer Qadhafi, who world leaders, including President Barack Obama, are calling on to leave power immediately, saying he has lost the right to rule by attacking his own people.
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