Oman's International Relations and Foreign Policy Initiatives - Research Paper Example

In order to fully understand and interpret Oman’s approach to foreign policy and thus international relations, it is important to understand theory and practice relative to international relations. In this regard, understanding how interests are balances, differences tolerated and mutual advantages are exploited provide a working perspective for understanding the foreign policy of Oman in international relations practice and theory. This research study seeks to provide an understanding of Oman’s foreign policy in the context of international relations theory and practice.

Foreign policy analyses provide a conceptual framework for understanding international relations theory (Hudson, 2005). In this regard, foreign policy analyses are defined by actors as agents and thus form the basis for everything that functions to connect or separate nations. At the heart of these national connections and disconnections are human beings who make decisions either in groups or alone (Hudson, 2005). Thus actor specific theory is important for understanding foreign policy and thus international theory and practice as it relates to Oman.

Since the end of the Cold War, it has become increasingly obvious that actor-specific theory provides the best method of understanding international relations. It has become clear that international relations are driven by human beings as agents of cross-state relations and as such, understanding international relations is a complex exercise and not capable of simplification (Hudson & Vore, 1995). Thus actor-specific theory which seeks to understand the conduct of particular actors in particular circumstances provides a robust explanation for understanding Oman’s foreign policy agenda as a subset of international relations (Smith, Hadfield & Dunne, 2008).

Situated at the Gulf’s entrance and with control of the Strait of Hormuz which represents a significant oil transport route, and forming a part of the Middle East and the Gulf region, Oman’s geopolitical sphere makes it an important study in terms of foreign policy analysis and thus international relations theory and practice. Oman’s Ibadhi religion, unremarkable oil resources, and geopolitical location separate Oman from the remainder of its neighbors in the Arabian Peninsula (Jones, 2007). As this research study will demonstrate, Oman is also distinguished from its neighbors in terms of foreign policy and international relations generally.

In order to analyze and understand Oman’s foreign policy in the wider field of international relations theory and practice, Hudson’s (2005; 1993) actor-specific theory will be used. In order to provide a conceptual framework for understanding Oman’s actor-specific motivations, Nonneman’s (2005) conceptualization of the determinants of foreign policy will be used. In other words, while analyzing Oman’s actor-specific foreign policy, three conceptual models will be used: the national conditions, regional conditions, and the international conditions interacting to inform actor-specific decisions and behavior.