Oman’s foreign policy has recently been the center of considerable analysis. As a country that harbors no hostility toward any government in the world and as the organizer and host of diplomatic talks between global adversaries, Oman has been called the Switzerland of the Middle East. As the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member on the best terms with Iran, Muscat has for decades served as a diplomatic bridge between the Islamic Republic and the Gulf Arab states and their Western allies.

Indeed, Muscat’s diplomatic maneuvers have recently shaped world history. In July 2012, Oman hosted secret talks between US and Iranian officials, which culminated in the landmark Iran nuclear deal signed earlier this year in Austria. Most recently, Oman’s flurry of diplomatic activities aimed at peacefully resolving the crises in Syria and Yemen have also made headlines in the international press.

While Oman continues to play its unique diplomatic cards in the region, the sultanate is also following other GCC states in shifting attention east toward China. Since Oman and China established official diplomatic relations in 1978, China’s thirst for oil has been the most influential factor shaping Sino-Omani relations. In recent years, however, Muscat and Beijing’s relationship has expanded into non-oil sectors, paving the way for the two nations to form a stronger long-term partnership.

Ties between the two countries date back to pre-Islamic history. Oman sent trade missions to China as early as the fourth century. By the eighth century, the Omanis reportedly introduced eastern China to Islam, according to former US Ambassador to Oman Gary Grappo.