Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, will kick off on Monday a tour of the Gulf region ahead of Riyadh's hosting of the Gulf Cooperation Council summit in mid-December.
His first stop will take him to neighboring Oman. He will also visit Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.
Crown Prince Mohammed will meet with Sultan of Oman Haitham bin Tariq Al Said in Muscat.
He will hold talks with Gulf leaders on efforts to bolster cooperation and stances among the GCC members. He will tackle regional, Arab and international issues, and achieving security and stability in the region. He will discuss Gulf security, especially Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
Gulf sources said Crown Prince Mohammed's visit will underscore building regional and international ties based on dialogue, joint cooperation and mutual respect with the aim of boosting regional and international stability.
In Oman, Crown Prince Mohammed is set to oversee the opening of the first direct land border between the Sultanate and Saudi Arabia. The Empty Quarter crossing will stretch 800 kms between the neighbors.
Saudi Arabia was the destination of Sultan Haitham's official visit abroad after he ascended the throne last year.
He met in July 2020 with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz in Neom city. The visit was capped with the formation of the Saudi-Omani coordination council that has paved the way for greater cooperation between the countries.
Saudi Ambassador to Muscat Abdullah bin Saud Al Anazi said on Sunday the Crown Prince's visit will underline the depth of the historic relations between the Kingdom and Oman.
In remarks to the Oman News Agency, he said the Kingdom and Sultanate have several common factors, whether on the local, regional or international levels.
They share several values and promote peace and they seek to push forward international efforts to achieve the interests of other nations, especially restoring peace in Yemen, he added.
Oman supports all of Saudi Arabia's efforts that aim to achieve peace in Yemen, he stressed.
