Pezeshkian Visits Oman Next Week to Enhance Relations

A handout photo made available by the Iranian Presidential Office shows Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (L) greeting Oman's Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi at a meeting in Tehran, Iran, 18 May 2025. EPA/IRANIAN PRESIDENT OFFICE HANDOUT
A handout photo made available by the Iranian Presidential Office shows Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (L) greeting Oman's Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi at a meeting in Tehran, Iran, 18 May 2025. EPA/IRANIAN PRESIDENT OFFICE HANDOUT
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Pezeshkian Visits Oman Next Week to Enhance Relations

A handout photo made available by the Iranian Presidential Office shows Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (L) greeting Oman's Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi at a meeting in Tehran, Iran, 18 May 2025. EPA/IRANIAN PRESIDENT OFFICE HANDOUT
A handout photo made available by the Iranian Presidential Office shows Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (L) greeting Oman's Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi at a meeting in Tehran, Iran, 18 May 2025. EPA/IRANIAN PRESIDENT OFFICE HANDOUT

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is scheduled to visit next week the Sultanate of Oman, the mediator in the ongoing indirect nuclear talks between the US and Iran, official Iranian media reported.

They quoted a spokesman for the presidency as saying that during the visit to Muscat, Pezeshkian will hold bilateral meetings with senior officials.

The announcement came one day after Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi held talks with the Iranian President and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on the sidelines of the Tehran Dialogue Forum.

Oman’s Foreign Ministry, which has been acting as a mediator between Tehran and Washington since April 12, will officially reveal the time and location of the fifth round of indirect nuclear talks between the two sides.

Last week, the US and Iran concluded a fourth round of nuclear talks in Muscat amid cautious optimism about a new accord that would prevent Tehran from having a nuclear weapon.

During his meeting with Albusaidi, Pezeshkian said that his upcoming trip to Oman will serve as a turning point in deepening relations between the two sides.

He praised bilateral relations between Iran and Oman, and hailed Muscat for its benevolent, committed, and constructive role in hosting the indirect negotiations between Tehran and Washington.

“We hope that through the sincere and genuine efforts and intentions of Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, these talks will lead to a just agreement that ensures lasting peace and stability in the region,” said Pezeshkian.

Later, Omani and Iranian foreign ministers held a meeting to discuss the nuclear issue.

“The two ministers discussed a range of ideas and proposals related to the ongoing Iranian-American talks aimed at reaching an agreement that fairly, practically and bindingly addresses the concerns and interests of both parties, and contributes to regional security and stability,” Oman’s official news agency said in a statement.

Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani then joined the meeting and the three ministers discussed the Iranian-US nuclear talks.

The meeting hoped Washington and Tehran will reach a fair, durable, and binding agreement, one that reinforces security, stability, and peace across the region, while elevating new heights for regional cooperation and dialogue.

Later at the Tehran Dialogue Forum, Oman’s Foreign Minister expressed optimism regarding recent signals, particularly from Washington, which he said may reflect a shift towards a more realistic and flexible approach to identifying viable dialogue partners.
He underlined that dialogue is not an easy option, but added that it is the only viable path to achieving a just settlement.

“While this development comes amid military escalation and immense humanitarian suffering, it points to a renewed willingness for genuine dialogue — even as Tel Aviv continues to avoid it through intensifying conflict on multiple fronts,” Albusaidi said.

Commenting on Pezeshkian’s visit to Oman, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said: “The visit of high-ranking Iranian and Omani officials to Muscat and Tehran is a normal thing and there are good relations between the two countries.”

He added: “The President's visit to Oman has been on the agenda for some time and this visit will be carried out and its details will be announced by the President's Office.”

The Iranian President’s upcoming trip to Oman comes following a visit to Baku last month.

Like Iran’s previous government, Pezeshkian's administration, which has been in office since August 2024, has articulated a “neighborly policy” that has at its core improved relations with Iran's Arab neighbors.

In May 2023, Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said visited Tehran for talks that focused on regional diplomatic and security issues. His visit was the first since he took office in 2020. It came a year after former President Ebrahim Raisi visited the Sultanate.

Iran, which faces a deteriorating economy hit by US sanctions, is seeking to strengthen its trade ties with Muscat.

Last February, Iran’s Industry, Mining, and Trade Minister Mohammad Atabak said his country exported approximately $1.146 billion worth of goods to Oman in the first nine months of 2024, marking a 15% increase compared to the same period last year.



UN Says 14 Million Children Did Not Receive a Single Vaccine in 2024

A mother holds her baby receiving a new malaria vaccine as part of a trial at the Walter Reed Project Research Center in Kombewa in Western Kenya on Oct. 30, 2009. (AP)
A mother holds her baby receiving a new malaria vaccine as part of a trial at the Walter Reed Project Research Center in Kombewa in Western Kenya on Oct. 30, 2009. (AP)
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UN Says 14 Million Children Did Not Receive a Single Vaccine in 2024

A mother holds her baby receiving a new malaria vaccine as part of a trial at the Walter Reed Project Research Center in Kombewa in Western Kenya on Oct. 30, 2009. (AP)
A mother holds her baby receiving a new malaria vaccine as part of a trial at the Walter Reed Project Research Center in Kombewa in Western Kenya on Oct. 30, 2009. (AP)

More than 14 million children did not receive a single vaccine last year — about the same number as the year before — according to UN health officials. Nine countries accounted for more than half of those unprotected children.

In their annual estimate of global vaccine coverage, released Tuesday, the World Health Organization and UNICEF said about 89% of children under one year old got a first dose of the diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough vaccine in 2024, the same as in 2023. About 85% completed the three-dose series, up from 84% in 2023.

Officials acknowledged, however, that the collapse of international aid this year will make it more difficult to reduce the number of unprotected children.

In January, US President Trump withdrew the country from the WHO, froze nearly all humanitarian aid and later moved to close the US AID Agency. And last month, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said it was pulling the billions of dollars the US had previously pledged to the vaccines alliance Gavi, saying the group had “ignored the science.”

Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, has previously raised questions the diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough vaccine, which has proven to be safe and effective after years of study and real-world use. Vaccines prevent 3.5 million to 5 million deaths a year, according to UN estimates.

“Drastic cuts in aid, coupled with misinformation about the safety of vaccines, threaten to unwind decades of progress,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

UN experts said that access to vaccines remained “deeply unequal” and that conflict and humanitarian crises quickly unraveled progress; Sudan had the lowest reported coverage against diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough.

The data showed that nine countries accounted for 52% of all children who missed out on immunizations entirely: Nigeria, India, Sudan, Congo, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Yemen, Afghanistan and Angola.

WHO and UNICEF said that coverage against measles rose slightly, with 76% of children worldwide receiving both vaccine doses. But experts say measles vaccine rates need to reach 95% to prevent outbreaks of the extremely contagious disease. WHO noted that 60 countries reported big measles outbreaks last year.

The US is now having its worst measles outbreak in more than three decades, while the disease has also surged across Europe, with 125,000 cases in 2024 — twice as many as the previous year, according to WHO.

Last week, British authorities reported a child died of measles in a Liverpool hospital. Health officials said that despite years of efforts to raise awareness, only about 84% of children in the UK are protected.

“It is hugely concerning, but not at all surprising, that we are continuing to see outbreaks of measles,” said Helen Bradford, a professor of children’s health at University College London.

“The only way to stop measles spreading is with vaccination,” she said in a statement. “It is never too late to be vaccinated — even as an adult.”