Muscat announces participation at Doha conference

The minister in charge of foreign relations in Oman Youssef Bin Alawi Bin Abdullah said that Oman will take part in the ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) due to be held in Qatar in November and will be attended by Israel.

In a statement he made on the occasion of the 33rd anniversary of Sultan Qabous Bin Saeed being in power in Oman, the Omani minister said " Israel participation or not is not a question of political nature. We are not going ( to the meeting ) to celebrate Israel. It is one like the other members." He explained that the WTO is an international organization which will hold its meeting in Arab state and we have to maintain solidarity with the Arab states not to show the others they we have differences and we fear the presence of Israel."

The Omani minister questioned " what is the difference that the WTO to meet in Geneva with every body is careful to attend ( despite the participation of Israel) or to meet in Qatar and " some " refuse to attend.?" Bin Alawi accused Israel of: "not wanting to be within the international group in committing to charters, rather to seek a system of its own and seeks to subjugate the international community for serving its own interests."