Two Centuries of U.S.-Oman Relations

Since the first visit of an American ship to an Omani port in 1790, Oman and the U.S. have worked together to foster two centuries of strong relations between our nations, as shown in the timeline below:

  • 1790   American vessel Boston Rambler reaches Muscat.
  • 1833   The U.S. and Oman sign the "Treaty of Amity and Commerce," first bilateral accord between the U.S. and an Arab Gulf state.
  • 1838   U.S. consulate opens in Oman.
  • 1840   First Arab diplomate to be accredited to the U.S., Ahmad bin Na'aman, arrives in New York on the Omani vessel Sultanah.
  • 1880   U.S. consulate reestablished in Muscat to improve political and economic exchanges between the two countries.
  • 1938   Sultan Said bin Taimur accepts an official invitation to meet with U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
  • 1958   U.S. and Oman renew "Treaty of Amity, Economic Relations and Consular Rights."
  • 1972   U.S. opens embassy in Muscat.
  • 1973   Omani embassy opens in Washington, D.C.
  • 1975   Sultan Qaboos comes to the U.S. on a private visit and meets with President Gerald Ford.
  • 1978   Oman participates in the Camp David peace talks.
  • 1983   Sultan Qaboos comes to the U.S. on a state visit and meets with President Ronald Reagan
  • 1986   Delegation from the Omani State Consultative Council (Majlis al Shurah) travels to Washington to conduct a legislative fact-finding mission.
  • 1986   President George H.W. Bush visits the Sultanate.
  • 1995   The Honorable Frances Cook appointed as U.S. Ambassador to Oman, the first female ambassador to serve in any Gulf Cooperation Council country.
  • 2000   U.S. President William J. Clinton visits Oman.
  • 2005   Omani delegation visits Washington, D.C.; Oman is the first Arab country to be featured in the Smithsonian Folklife Festival.
  • 2005   Her Excellency Hunaina Sultan Al Mughairy appointed first Arab woman to serve as ambassador to the U.S.
  • 2006   U.S.-Oman Free Trade Agreement signed.

 

Today, Oman and the U.S. continue their centuries-old relationship through cultural, educational, environmental, and economic ties.  Both countries maintain permanent diplomatic missions in the other's respective capitals.  Their addresses can be found below:

Embassy of the Sultanate of Oman in the United States:

  • Ambassador Hunaina bint Sultan Al Mughairy
  • Embassy of the Sultanate of Oman
  • 2535 Belmont Road, NW
  • Washington, D.C. 20008
  • Unites States of America
  • Tel: (202) 387-1980
  •  

Embassy of the United States in Oman:

  • Ambassador Richard J. Schmierer
  • Embassy of the United States
  • P.O. Box 202, PC 115
  • Madinat Sultan Qaboos
  • Sultanate of Oman
  • Tel: (968) 2469-8989