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Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/16/world/middleeast/16oman.html
Oman Seeks Cooperation with Iran
[New York Times] Michael Slackman - The Sultanate of Oman has accelerated its cooperation with Tehran, defying overtures from Egypt and Saudi Arabia to pull away from Iran. Oman, like Syria and Qatar, sees in Iran an important political and economic ally that is too powerful and too potentially dangerous to ignore, let alone antagonize. The close ties between Iran and Oman help explain the West's failure to cripple Iran with trade sanctions. Oman has for years helped Iranian smugglers circumvent international trade sanctions, with fleets of speedboats crossing the Strait of Hormuz daily, making the trip between Iran and Oman in under an hour. Oman collects taxes on all the goods.