Sultan Qaboos bin Said, the ruler of Oman and the Middle East’s longest serving ruler, died on January 10 after nearly 50 years in power. Oman, under Qaboos rule, transformed from an undeveloped country in the 1970’s, to a country known as ‘the Switzerland of the Middle East’ at the time of his death.

Oman has enjoyed successful relations with its closest regional neighbors, Iran and Saudi Arabia while also maintaining what some experts describe as a ‘special relationship’ with the United States.

Qaboos kept a low profile, and managed to unify Omanis under a national identity, while ruling as a temperate, visionary leader, something all too rare in the history of the Middle East. We wanted to find out what made Qaboos’s rule so successful, and what the secret to his leadership was. We also wanted to find out what challenges lay ahead for Oman’s new ruler, and how the leadership change may disrupt regional relationships for Oman?

Cipher Brief Expert Ambassador Gary Grappo served as U.S. Ambassador to Oman from 2006 – 2009 and Deputy Chief of Mission in Muscat 1998-2001. He also held senior positions including Minister Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and Charge d’Affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Ambassador had a special relationship with Qaboos and we asked him to share some insights with us to better understand who he was, how he ruled and why Oman is so important to the United States.

The Cipher Brief: Qaboos bin Said was the longest-serving leader in the Middle East at the time of his death, having ruled as the Sultan of Oman for almost 50 years. What was your reaction when you heard the news that he had died?

Ambassador Grappo: I was taken aback when I learned of his passing for a couple of reasons. I served in Oman for two tours, in 1998 to 2001 I was the deputy chief of mission and then again in 2006 to ’09 as the ambassador. When I lived and served in Oman, I always remembered him as very healthy with a sharp mind and a very clear thinker. He had been ill for a number of years and had received treatment, and unfortunately, his illness ended up taking him. But when I knew him, he was very healthy. I used to say he was by far probably the healthiest leader anywhere in the Middle East and was conscious of fitness, and diet, and so forth.

I had the good fortune of meeting with the sultan on numerous occasions. Very often, I was accompanying senior visitors to see him. But as ambassador, I was accorded the opportunity on a number of occasions to meet one-on-one with him. During those one-on-one meetings, I think the shortest time I spent with him was an hour and a half. There were a couple of times when it was at least three hours. There are many reasons for that. But one in particular was because of the value he placed on Oman’s relationship with the United States. It was one of the two most important relationships, in his estimation, that the country had.

He was, I think, a very unique and extraordinary person apart from his position as monarch in Oman for, as you said, nearly 50 years. But also, he was probably the best friend of the United States that most Americans never knew. He purposely kept a very low profile and did not seek a lot of attention. But on numerous occasions, he and his government worked behind the scenes to support the United States, and never asked for anything in return except for this special relationship, which we did indeed have. I was actually very saddened when I learned of his passing, because I had gotten to know him fairly well.

The Cipher Brief: Oman as you mention has kept a low profile as a country, yet they sit geographically right in the center of a very important and tumultuous region. Whether it’s the U.S.-Iran crisis or the multiple regional conflicts, the Middle East is constantly in the global news cycle. Yet most Americans probably couldn’t point to Oman on a map, nor would they understand the significance that Oman has played in being an ally to America in the region. How would you characterize Oman’s role with respect to the U.S.’s counterterrorism efforts, but also more broadly as a strategic partner in a very important region of the world?

Ambassador Grappo: It’s important to understand that everything the U.S. experienced with respect to Oman started with Sultan Qaboos. There is no aspect of Oman that we observe today that he didn’t affect significantly. Certainly, its foreign policy and national security policy, its economic policy, education, healthcare, environment, its culture and its transportation system. The driving force behind all of it was Qaboos. Moreover, he paid enormous attention to detail and early in his reign he began identifying talent in his country and ensuring that they got the necessary training and experience to carry forward his vision of the country, whether it was the transportation program, its foreign policy, or armed forces.

He had a brilliant strategic mind and was a polymath in every sense of the word, but he was also incredibly meticulous. I got to know his project manager on the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque, which is just an incredible piece of architecture in Muscat. Qaboos would show up at the work site early in the morning – at five or six o’clock in the morning – and do a walkthrough throughout the construction phase, and this was a multi-year project, identifying what he believed were shortcomings and instructing the engineers, designers and some of the technicians on modifications he wanted to see. He had an incredible artistic and architectural sense. He actually did that in a number of major projects there in the country.

You could see this focus also exemplified in his armed forces. The U.S. military considered the Omani armed forces, even as small as they are, to be among the best and most professional anywhere in the Middle East. In my own experience, I remember visiting a base where Oman had its new F-16s. Having been in the Air Force myself and obviously with some understanding, I met with some of the Omani aircraft mechanics. What was fascinating was that unlike in many of the other Gulf countries, all these mechanics were NCOs who spoke very good English. And they had all received years of training. It was the NCOs, just like in our own armed forces who were doing that work, not officers, which is the case in air forces elsewhere in the Middle East. It was a reflection of his attitude about the professionalism, training, education, and attention to detail he demanded from the military. In every aspect of Oman, Qaboos’ imprint is there. It’s what took Oman from being really one of the least developed countries in the world when he took over in 1970, to the so-called ‘Switzerland of the Middle East’ today.

The Cipher Brief: Qaboos’ successor, Haitham bin Tariq al-Said, has been called a forward-thinking individual who is ‘western-oriented’. Do you believe that he will continue to execute Qaboos’ vision for Oman?

Ambassador Grappo: I think those characterizations of Haitham bin Tariq are correct. He is very Western-oriented. He was educated extensively in the UK at Oxford University. He is like Qaboos to a certain extent. He has wide-ranging interests and has spent a fair amount of time in the West. Qaboos was often criticized for his failure to formally groom and announce a successor. But if you look at Haitham’s background, in fact, Qaboos knew exactly what he was doing. He exposed Haitham to those areas that Qaboos felt were most important for the leader of Oman. And I’ll point these out.

The first is, and this is important to understand about Qaboos, is that from the time he took power in 1970, he wanted to unify the country, because at that point it was dispersed and full of fractious tribes throughout, with some small fishing villages along the coast and a handful of commercial towns. And he brought them all together under a single Omani identity, capitalizing on a very long, 2000-year history. And if you look at what roles Haitham has previously held, he spent almost 15 years as Minister of Heritage and Culture where he was steeped in the rich history, heritage and culture of Oman. Qaboos, I know, felt that was essential for any future monarch of the country.

Number two, and one of the other distinguishing characteristics of Oman is it’s very unique yet quite successful and also controversial foreign policy. Oman is able to carry out a very active but below the radar foreign policy. It’s one of the few countries in the world that gets along with everyone, even some countries the United States doesn’t have strong relationships with, most especially, Iran. Qaboos was able to manage the relationship of Oman with his neighborhood’s two giants, Saudi Arabia and Iran. He once told me, “We have to live in this neighborhood and get along with the neighbors we have.” And he was committed to that. And sometimes it ruffled our feathers, but he would always explain, “We have a normal relationship with Iran. It’s not special.” And it nowhere near approximates the relationship that he had with the U.S. and the UK. But he managed to maintain a pretty normal relationship with Iran and equally with Saudi Arabia which was difficult for him.

Haitham has also spent at least a dozen years in the foreign ministry and he’s very familiar with the inner workings of Oman’s foreign policy. He was both Undersecretary and later Secretary General of Political Affairs which required that he did a fair amount of traveling to meet with other senior government officials in the region and around the world. I think when he moved on to the Minister of Heritage and Culture, he already had a solid grounding in Oman’s foreign policy.

And then thirdly, some years ago Qaboos ensured that Haitham figured prominently in the creation of Oman’s new economic plan, the vision 2040, where he was able to familiarize himself with the challenges of Oman’s economy.

Going forward, those are the three areas- culture, economy and foreign policy, where he is going to be most challenged. And he’s got the basic grounding now in those three areas to carry on as he has said, with the legacy of Qaboos.

The Cipher Brief: How do you see the strategic players, Russia and China as well as regional players like Iran and Saudi Arabia looking to exploit, frustrate or change the dynamic with respect to Oman and their new leader?

Ambassador Grappo: The challenge particularly for the United States is that due to foreign policy miscalculations and mistakes, we now have a problem where an area that we enjoyed virtual dominance in terms of our presence, the Middle East, is now seeing the entry or reentry of the two greater powers that you mentioned, Russia and China.

With respect to Russia, my own view is that I don’t think Russia brings to the table anything close to what the United States does. But nevertheless, Putin is doing a very good job of taking advantage of some of these errors that we have made and particularly as countries seek military assistance or weapons, without the sort of strings that come attached to American programs and assistance.

Secondly, China is a much different challenge because they bring an economic clout that only the United States can compete with. And I think we will see an increasing presence of China and to a certain extent, that’s normal. The United States is far less dependent on oil from that part of the world today as it has ever been, while China will become more and more dependent. Some estimates are that in the next decade, almost two-thirds of China’s oil and gas imports will be coming from the Middle East. So, we expect China to play a greater role in the Middle East and they will probably be forced to play a more active role with regard to the security and stability of that part of the world. Not necessarily the exact role that the United States played, but nevertheless a very important role to ensure the security of the resources reaching China itself.

I’ve always been a bit leery of Chinese investment, as it often comes with unseen strings attached. And even in the case of Oman where we see very substantial investment, for example, within Oman’s electricity industry, I think they (China) own something like 50% of that. They were the primary and probably the dominant investor in this new port project called Duqm, which is a major undertaking by Oman. But I think now, a few years down the road from that initial investment and all the construction, it hasn’t quite paid the dividends with respect to employment of Omanis they expected. And that’s not so unusual for these big projects undertaken by China. I think countries like Oman will be taking a longer view when they look at China as an investor.

But you raised a very important point and one of the biggest, initial challenges I think Haitham will face is maintaining this very unique path that Qaboos laid out for his country when it comes to foreign policy. That is ensuring that the core relationships with Britain and the United States remain solid, firm and healthy and that he does not get drawn into the tension that currently characterizes the U.S.-Iran relationship or the Saudi Arabia-Iran relationship. And that one, I’m sure, is one where he may find himself challenged because I think both Iran and Saudi Arabia may be considering testing the new leader now that Qaboos is not on the scene.

Qaboos had extraordinary influence and stature and gravitas. He really couldn’t be challenged. And Haitham, I think, will become like that, but we haven’t seen it yet and so he’s probably going to be tested. But I also hope that the United States can step forward and reaffirm its special relationship with Oman, because as I said at the outset, it’s a very important one. They occupy a very unique geographic position and they have been a stable ally. We haven’t had to worry about them the way we’ve had to worry about Saudi Arabia or Kuwait or Jordan or Egypt.

Oman has of course had a few problems. The 2010 Arab Spring was Qaboos’ biggest challenge. But for the most part, they’ve been able to take care of themselves. It’s the only country in the Middle East that never had a terrorist incident. Terrorism in Oman is almost a contradiction in terms.

One has to look into Oman’s history, its culture and the nature of the Omani people. So, for all the credit I give Qaboos, I also give a great deal of credit to Omanis themselves. They’re a very reflective, almost subdued and thoughtful people. This is speaking obviously very broadly.

The Cipher Brief: Any final thoughts to share about Qaboos as we reflect upon his life and his death and the road ahead for Oman?

Ambassador Grappo: Qaboos was the ideal leader for Oman, and Oman was the ideal country for him. The two fit together very well. If we stand back and look at the entire globe, beginning with the end of World War II, I can identify, and this is a personal observation, two leaders who were truly genuinely transformational and visionary leaders of their countries that took them from effectively backwater status to virtually first-world countries that are highly respected.

The first is Lee Kuan Yew in Singapore. And the second is Qaboos in Oman. Qaboos was a visionary leader and also an intellectual. He could discourse for hours on multiple subjects and he had multiple interests. Everything from agronomy to astronomy to Islam and religion in general. Obviously political affairs, international affairs and music. He was a self-taught musician who taught himself how to play the pipe organ. And he was a voracious reader of many subjects. He created a clear vision for his country. He understood Oman’s history of great mariners, and great traders, and he was able to build on that so that the country had a single identity. They’re Omanis. Many have tribal identification but everyone in that country is proud to call themselves an Omani. They understood themselves, their country and its special place in the world. And all of that came as a result of a very brilliant man with a very clear vision of where he wanted his country to go. And I think it was largely fulfilled.

One of the major challenges that Qaboos faced in his last 20 years of reign — and Haitham is going to face it in spades going forward — is Oman’s economy. It’s had a very rough go the last half dozen or so years. Qaboos, I think, got them on a good start, not altogether successful but a good start in diversifying the economy, which is what they’re going to have to do. But they’re facing some serious challenges in encouraging foreign direct investment and addressing the problem of youth unemployment. I think it’s close to 50%, which though not unusual for the Middle East, is quite serious. And to be able to provide confidence for the younger generation that they will live as well as their parents and grandparents have will be critical for Haitham. Oil is not going to do that for them anymore. They can rely for a few more years on their limited oil and gas resources but they’re going to have to find areas of diversification. They’ve begun some efforts in  transportation, tourism, fishing, mining and so forth, but Haitham is really going to have to double down to ensure the continued prosperity of the country because they have been able to maintain a pretty high standard of living over the course of Qaboos’ reign.

I’ll close with a story about Qaboos that he shared with me. It typifies the kind of leader he was for an absolute monarch and how he actually governed.

Early on in his reign he was, of course, aggressively moving forward in trying to unite and modernize the country. One of the important components of that, he shared with me one time, was building roads and extending communications around the country. He wanted to build a road through a pretty remote area of the country to connect it with Muscat. But the Sheiks of three of the tribes in that region adamantly objected. They did not want these frivolous trappings of modernity intervening in their lives. Qaboos really wanted to move forward with these roads and his advisors and his military commanders said, “We just need to send the military down there, they’ll protect the road-building crews while they build the roads.” Qaboos thought about that, of forcing these sheiks and tribes to accept the road.

Instead he invited these three sheiks to a banquet at his palace and treated them as honored guests. The subject of the roads never came up. And then at the end of the banquet, he escorted them outside and there waiting for each of them was a brand-new European luxury car. And of course, these three sheiks couldn’t wait to show off this wonderful gift the Sultan had given them to the members of their tribes. But they couldn’t get the cars there because there were no roads there. As a result, they were very, very anxious to see those new roads built.

I think this is a wonderful example of how an absolute monarch, with his very unique touch, with his strong connection to his people, and with an overriding motive of persuading Omanis to go forward with him, to join him, as opposed to being forced to get in line was able to see his vision realized in so many ways. That’s the way he governed for nearly 50 years.

You can probably tell I had a great deal of respect for him. He did have some blind spots, but he was a pretty exceptional leader and particularly for the United States, he was a great friend. I wish more Americans were aware of this. We’ve had a few senior officials who understood and appreciated the special relationship that we had with Oman and certainly credited Qaboos for that. But like I said, he was the best friend Americans never knew.