Some wonder about the absence of the Sultanate of Oman from participating in the new global shipping system that was announced on the sidelines of the G20 meetings held in India recently. Oman participated with several countries outside the G20 in response to an invitation from India.
At the same time, others believe that Oman has done well by not entering into this proposal adopted by some countries which today faces many challenges due to the other giant project, the 'Belt and Road' of China as, well as from the decisions of the BRICS group. This proposal aims to introduce Israel into the global trade route between India and Europe through the Gulf region, and to push for normalization between some Arab countries and Israel during the next stage, especially with Saudi Arabia, before the end of this year.
There is a desire among some Arab countries to transform their bilateral relations with some countries in the G20 into multidimensional partnerships by joining this corridor known as India-Middle East-European Corridor (IMEC) that can serve energy issues in the future. The last G20 summit was held in the absence of the Russian and Chinese leaders.
The latest proposal for this corridor came from America, India, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and a group of European Union countries, which will work to enhance trade and stimulate economic development among them, as well as enhance communication and economic integration among them.
The IMEC proposal will be carried out — as stated in Memorandum of Understanding — to be a reliable and cost-effective cross-border transport network through ship transit and then rail transit; which will facilitate the smooth movement of goods and services.
US believes that this project is an alternative to the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative. It focuses strongly on the cooperation of some Arab and Mediterranean countries. As for China, it is continuing its tireless efforts to implement its plan for the Belt and Road project, while it has been able, through its membership in the BRICS group to include 6 other countries.
As for the Indian sources, they see that the India-Gulf-Europe corridor is a manifestation of the deep integration between India and the Gulf states, especially Saudi Arabia and the Emirates, as well as to create a broader geopolitical and economic rapprochement and to large the volume of the trade.
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