China and Oman issue a joint statement on deepening their strategic partnership; full Xi–Haitham talks communiqué released.
Xinhua reported on 2 November (Ma Zhuoyan, Sun Nan) that President Xi Jinping held talks that morning at the Great Hall of the People with Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik of Oman, who is on a state visit, and that during the visit the two sides issued a Joint Statement of the People's Republic of China and the Sultanate of Oman on Deepening the China–Oman Strategic Partnership. Xi said expanding and deepening ties is a shared strategic choice and that China is ready to take the partnership to a higher level; he called the visit the first by an Omani head of state since diplomatic ties began 48 years ago; proposed stronger political trust and exchanges on governance, plus cooperation in energy, industry, investment, AI, science and technology and people-to-people ties; and said the Middle East and Gulf should not become an arena of great-power rivalry or geopolitical conflict, with China ready to coordinate with Arab and GCC states including Oman. Haitham affirmed Oman's one-China principle and support for China's sovereignty and territorial integrity; said China has for years been Oman's largest trading partner; and expressed readiness to align development strategies and expand cooperation in trade, investment, industry, infrastructure, AI and science and technology, while praising China's positions on Middle East issues. After the talks the two leaders witnessed the signing of cooperation documents covering supply chains, green development and digital finance; beforehand Xi hosted a welcome ceremony, and at noon a welcome banquet, with Wang Yi attending. People's Daily Online carried the Xinhua communiqué at 13:37. Oman Observer published Haitham's full speech the same day, in which he proposed exploring a preferential bilateral trade and investment arrangement with China and said Chinese companies' investment in Oman exceeded 33 billion yuan. Reuters, via Arab News and MarketScreener, said Haitham floated a preferential trade-and-investment deal at the start of the meeting and that Xi called deeper ties a shared strategic choice. The talks and signing ceremony were published at 12:00 and 13:00 today (chinaday.news/i/72, i/73). The joint statement's full text and a Li Qiang meeting wire had not appeared and remain to be followed.
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