Oman denies notifying US message to Iran

Oman on Monday denied media reports of notifying any US message to Iran after the downing of a US spy drone aircraft by Iranian defenses last week, reports Anadolu Agency.

Oman’s state-run news agency ONA quoting a statement from the foreign ministry described such reports incorrectly.

The statement said:

While the Sultanate [Oman government] follows with utmost interest the current developments in the region and hopes from the Iranian and US sides to exercise self-control and solve the outstanding issues between them through dialogue, it affirms the incorrectness of what have been circulated through media about the Sultanate’s conveying a US message to the Iranian government regarding the incident of downing a US aircraft on June 20, 2019.

While Tehran says the aircraft had violated its airspace when it was attacked, Washington insists that it was in international airspace.

Tensions have been rising between the US and Iran since May 2018, when Washington unilaterally withdrew from a landmark 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany and the EU.

READ: US prods Iran for talks to ease Gulf tensions; Tehran dismisses sanctions threat

The US has since embarked upon a diplomatic and economic campaign put pressure on Iran in order to renegotiate the agreement.

As part of its campaign, the U.S has reimposed sanctions on exports of Iranian crude oil, which has nosedived the Iranian economy.