UNCLAS MUSCAT 000101

SENSITIVE, SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SENV ENRG PREL MU
SUBJECT: OMAN'S PLANS TO ASSOCIATE WITH COPENHAGEN


1. (SBU) On February 10 the Ambassador inquired from Sayyid Badr,
the MFA Secretary General, whether Oman plans to accede to the
Copenhagen Accord. Badr answered that Oman was drafting a letter to
the UN Secretary General that would say "We welcome the accord and
are doing our best in enacting policies in this regard. We look
forward to the next conference and international agreement." In a
January 24 meeting with the DCM, Badr also indicated that Oman is
likely to accede to Copenhagen.




2. (SBU) Additionally, EconOff raised the issue of the Copenhagen
Accord with Ibrahim Al Ajmi, the Director General of Climate Change
at the Ministry for Environment and Climate on February 9. Al Ajmi
said that Oman, in principle, agrees with Copenhagen. However
before accession is possible Oman must complete internal
consultation and discussions.




3. (SBU) COMMENT: The Government of Oman carefully considers any
international agreement before acceding. Once it accedes, it
thoroughly honors its commitment. Therefore, although Oman remains
likely to accede, it will almost certainly do so only after it has
a plan to implement the commitments required by Copenhagen. END
COMMENT.
Schmierer