13. Letter From President Carter to Omani Sultan Qaboos1
Thank you for your letter of January 3,2 addressing pressing security problems in your area and proposing closer consultations between our two governments. I appreciate Your Majesty’s views on matters which are of concern to all who value peace and stability in the Middle East, the Arabian Peninsula and the Persian Gulf.
I wish to assure Your Majesty of the United States’ continuing interest in the security of Oman and its neighbors. The views that you expressed in your letter are of particular interest to me in view of recent events in Iran and the Soviets’ efforts to enhance their influence in this area. Any threat to an area of such strategic importance to the United States would be of deep concern to us. You can be certain of our resolve to help our friends to preserve the independence and stability of your region. I know that this is an objective that we share.
Accordingly, Your Majesty, I am pleased that Secretary Vance has extended an invitation to Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Zawawi to come to Washington in the near future. An exchange of views between our foreign ministers will be an important step in our continuing consultations. I know that the Secretary looks forward to meeting with Minister Zawawi.
[Page 33]Please accept, Your Majesty, my appreciation for your support and counsel. With best wishes for you and your family in the coming year.
Sincerely,
- Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Middle East, Subject File, Box 73, Oman: 1–4/79. No classification marking. Brzezinski sent the letter to Carter under a January 18 memorandum that indicated Vance had approved an earlier version of the letter (see Document 12) and requested that Carter sign the letter. A handwritten note on Brzezinski’s covering memorandum states that Carter signed the letter on January 18.↩
- See footnote 2, Document 12.↩