EX-INTELLIGENCE AGENTS ARE SAID TO HAVE MAJOR ROLES IN OMAN

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000504420008-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 27, 2012
• Sequence Number: 8
• Publication Date: March 26, 1985
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504420008-2
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NEW YORK TIMES
26 March, 1985
Ex-Intelligence Agetits Are S,.
Major Roles in Oman
The following article is based on re-
porting by Judith Miller and Jeff Gerth
and was written by Mr. Gerth.
Spacial to The New York Timee
WASHINGTON, March 25 - Am
the foreign advisers who have p av a
major role in the tersian U lfnatiooo
Oman is a former senior Central Inte -
gence ency o ici who heads an
American co ration that manages
country s most strategic region.
The corporation, Tetra Tech interna-
tional, has a contract with the Govern-
I of Oman to manage the develop-
ment of the Masandam Peninsula that
Second of two articles on Oman.
sits astride the Strait of Hormuz, which
separates the area from Iran and
through which travels a significant
amount of the West's oil.
For other Americans, even such offi-
cial visitors as Congressional staff
members, the sensitive Masandam re-
gion is off-limits, according to two
American officials who recently visited
Oman and were not allowed to tour the
area.
The parent of Tetra Tech
Interna- tional is Tetra Tech, which is based in
Pasadena, Calif., and specializes in
providing products and services in the
areas of water and energy resources. It
is a subsidiary of Honeywell Inc., a
leading United States military contra,--
tor with headquarters in Minneapolis.
Tetra Tech International helps man-
age several key Omani Government
agencies in addition to Masandam
Province, and the company and its par-
ent work for both commercial and gov-
ernment customers in several other
Middle Eastern countries, including
Saudi Arabia, as well as in the United
States.
The president of Tetra Tech Intern a-
ti the man who helped to get its
tract in Oman is James H. Critch-
e w before joining e con
had in 1975 an interest in
for Oman. work-
the I.A. both as head of the
Middle East desk and ater as the chief
ink' ence official or energy. accord-
ing to former intelligence officials and
pub documents,
. Critchfleld is among about 20
American, British and Arab advisers
to the country's ruler, Sultan Qabus bin
Said, who have helped shape the coun-
es.
try's foreign and domestic polici
Like Mr. Critchfield, many of the ad-
visers have intelligence backgrounds
.
In an interview
C t e acknowledged that he is one
Of the closest American advisers to
Oman's ruler. and he said he no 1 onger
ha an to o with the C.I.A.
et ere s a perception
in man a r. tc -';fie and
to i ence bacitzmu-nds
retain ties to their former em 1 e .
As a result, Western and Omani offi-
dais said, the-role of Westerners in
Oman has become a subject of dispute.
An Active Area
For Spy Agencies
The Middle East has long been a cal-
dron - of intrigue and foreign intelli-
gence activities by both Western and
Communist countries; the Russians,
the officials noted, are known to be ac-
tive throughout much of the region, pri-
marily in Syria, Libya and Southern
Yemen.
In addition, Western and Arab offi-
cials said, for many in the Middle East,
truth and rumor are often blurred, and
perceptions tend to be as politically im-
portant as fact. One of the le acies
they said, is that Omams tend to &,-
eve that former associations with in_
telligence agencies continue.
pe~rcwtions are tifW- enhanced
the nature of the C.I.A. itself, the of-
dals said, in art because the a
has a variety of re ationshins with out-
siders rannin from contract em 1 -
ees to part-time ormants to contacts
like businessmen and journali,
debrief the men on various matters.
The issue o advisers in Oman fig-
ures in an investigation by the Securi-
ties and Exchange Commission into
millions of dollars in payments made
by Ashland Oil to secure business in
Oman
.
The investigation is into possible
violations by Ashland of the Foreign
Corrupt Practices Act, which forbids
..sannaMc by Amariron ,.nn,noniac fn
Mr. Landon and Mr. Omar have had I
s wi a .. acco -
to several main o icia s, former
American intelligence officio s and e
c documents, which were
gubmitted to a Congressional comet -
tee and filed with the
on, w o yes in England
and no longer has an official role in
Oman, declined a request to be inter-
viewed. A spokesman for Mr. Omar,
who also no longer has an official role
in Oman, said Mr. Omar would not talk
with the press.
Roles for Foreigners
After 1970 Coup
The relationships between foreign
advisers and Oman blossomed soon
after the coup in 1970 that brought Sul-
tan Qabus to power, according to
Omani and Western officials, some of
the advisers and public documents.
Since then, the advisers have been in-
volved in writing Omani laws, estab-
lishing diplomatic relationships be-
tween Oman and its neighbors, provid-
ing security for the nation's ruler and
lobbying for Oman in the United States.
In 1971, Robert B. Anderson, a for-
mer Secretary of the Treasury in the
Eisenhower Administration, became
an unpaid economic adviser to the Sul-
tan. His job, he said in an interview late
last year, was "to consult on ways to
improve their economy" and get Oman
out from under the dominance of the
British," who arrived in the country
before the American advisers.
Mr. Anderson said his Omani role
was arranged in part by Ghassan
Shakir, a Saudi with close ties to the
United States and Mr. Anderson.. Mr.
Shakir also became an adviser to the
Sultan. as did r. Omar. a yan
exile, according to American intelli-
gence officials an a lml repre-
pared by Ashland oil lawyers for the
con s board of tors. The re-
port investigated egations by Ash-
land officials involved in Omani busi-
ness ventures that payments to Mr.
Omar and Mr. Landon had violated the
Foreign Corrupt-Practices Act; it con-
cluded that the payments did not vio-
late the law.
I Mr. Omar and Mr. Shakir later came
under criticism from British bankers
and Omani officials for millions of dol-
lars in commissions they made during
Oman's development in the 1970's, ac-
cording to Omani officials and the 1981
Ashland report filed with the S.E.C. No
formal charges were ever brought
against the two men.
Continued
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 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504420008-2
Mr. snakir, who lives in Saudi Ara-
bia, could not be reached for comment
through his business associates, who
declined to discuss his work in Oman.
The Sultan's new, outside economic
advisers also became involved in for-
eign affairs. Mr. Anderson said he was
personally responsible for Oman's re-
establishing long dormant diplomatic
relations with key neighbors like Saudi
Arabia.
In 1971, as a result of Mr. Anderson's
close ties with King Faisal of Saudi
Arabia, Sultan Qabus made a state
visit to Saudi Arabia, leading to the
eventual establishment of diplomatic
relations between the two countries,
according to Mr. Anderson and Amer-
ican and Omani officials.
i In another diplomatic venture, Mr.
Omar helped smooth Oman's relations
with other Arab countries and played a
key role in getting the Sultan to refrain
from denouncing Egypt for signing the
1978 Camp David accords, according to
several Omani officials and Ashland oil
documents that have been made pub-
lic.
Omanis Turned
U.S. Embassy Aide
Asked About C.I.A.
C. Patrick Quinlan, who was charge
d'a aires and the highest-ranking
Sta a Department official in coun-
t in the early 1970's sal in an inter-
view in 1983 that he rail ues-
tions about C.I.A. connections tp~
Omani advisers. Mr. Quinlan said his
protests were bYsed on his concern that
foreign policy was being undermined
by back-channel discussions.
"I discovered that the C.I.A. had con-
nections with Robert Anderson and
Omar." he said.
e emng to rceptions by many
Omanis hid pe: "It was widely be-
ieved they were associated with the
C.I.A., and I didn't know what repre-
sentations they were making to his
males in the name of the United
Others who became involved in
Qman, !5cordmg to the Western and
Oman officials, me u a ormer
C.1 A. employee who installed security
devices Andeectromc ear in the r
ace. a was still an adviser in charge or
communications for the palace as of
December 1984, the officials said.
Chester A. Nagle, whom Omani and
Wes ern o c alss and Public Ashland
documents Identified as another
r-
mer en to Bence Agency em-
ployee, was invof in the sale of se-
equipment to man, acco mg
to an main official.
Mr. Nagle now edits a military and
diplomacy magazine in Virginia. After
repeated requests for an interview, Mr.
Nagle's administrative assistant,
Leslie Roper, said, "I don't think he
has anything he wants to talk to you
about."
States. ey were unofficial represent- In 1979, Mr. Nagle registered with
atives of the U.S. Government." the Justice Department as a foreign
Mr. Quinlan said he was also con- agent of Oman, working for the palace
cerned about "the large commissions" office until 1982, according to public
being paid to Mr. Omar. In addition, he records. State Department documents
said, he recommended that ties be? show that in 1983, Mr. Nagle was listed
tween the C.I.A. and the Omani ad ' - as a special assistant to the palace of
e fice.
But, he said, he soon changed jobs
it To Other Americans The Omanis turned to other Amer-
icans to assist in economic develop-
ment. In 1972, an American energy con-
sultant, C. Stirling Snodgrass, was
brought in by the Omanis to organize
that country's petroleum ministry, ac-
cording to Omani officials and other
sources.
According to two former United
States intelligence o icials. while
working for Oman Mr. Snod
s also
had a secret relationship
e
C.I.A. and headed two C.I.A.-owned
energy consu t companies Wash-
ington until he died in 1974.. Thomas W. Hill Jr., an American at-
; torney, became legal adviser to the Sul-
tan in 1972 as a result of introductions
to Omani officials by Mr. Anderson, ac-
cording to a former American adviser
to the Omani Government. Over the
next several years Mr. Hill was said to
have written several Omani laws in the
areas of commerce, banking and
ethics.
In addition, Mr. Hill was said to have
provided a legal opinion that enabled
Oman to void an earlier petroleum con-
cession and award it, with the help of
Mr. Anderson, to another venture.
Mr. Hill no longer works for the
Omani Government, but still does busi-
Hess in the country representing for-
eign businessmen. Mr. Hill was asked
to be interviewed on his involvement in
manan n to commen u
did sa that he had not ever worked for
the On another matter, Mr. Anders
said that he had arranged a marine
survey contract in the early 1970's fo
an American company.
The Sultan's uncle, Taria bin-Tai
mur who was Prime Minister at thtime. voi concern about the marine
contract and asserted that it was a
Q. in the I
cover or rations
dian Ocean accordin to Omani an
15*
rips o ua s. a assertion w
subsequently denied by Americans
working on the project.
and never heard back from the State
Department. State Department offi-
cials said they were unable to find the
relevant documents in response to a
two-year effort to obtain them under
the Freedom of Information Act.
Mr. Anderson said in an interview
that he was unaware of Mr. Quinlan's
protests. He said he had voluntarily re-
ported information to the C.I.A.. "if I
learned somethin of advantage to the
hai
ministration but said he
not
ha any 'o cu responsibilities" on
fWfisdf o the agency.
A Washington attorney who has rep-
resented Mr. Omar, Myles Ambrose,
said Mr. Omar did not talk to the press.
Sultan Visited U.S.,
And Relations Improved
In 1975, with the help of Mr. Omar,
Sultan Qabus made his first official
visit to the United States, meeting with
President Ford and other top officials,
according to Omani officials. One for-
mer Omani official said that at the
meeting, the United States agreed to
the sale of TOW antitank missiles to
Oman and that Mr. Omar received a
commission on the sale.
Relations between the United States
and Oman improved after the 1975
meetings. In the next few years,
officials and foreign agent registration
records at the Justice Department that
were filed by Mr. Nagle, Mr. Nagle was
hired by Mr. Landon, the British mili-
tary officer.
Mr. Landon has held various official
positions within Oman. Though he is
now based in England and most of his
Omani dealings are in the commercial
area, he is still. considered to have the
best access to the Sultan among non-
Omanis, Omani and Western officials
said.
According to an Omani adviser, Mr.
Landon is also the main connection in
Oman for Mr. Critchfield, the president
of Tetra Tech.
Some See Company
As Political Liability.
A few Omani officials said that 'the
activities of Mr. Critchfield and his
company could become a political li-
ability for the Omani Government
should more Omanis learn about the
company's role in the country.
The said that some ? Omanis ob-
lected to e Sultan's vng turned
over as much civil authon to a n-
vate compmy. especially because of
the widespread. lion that Mr.
Critchfie retained ties to a C.I.A.
despite Mr. nt ie s denial of any
Mr. Omar and Dr. Omar Zawawi, an I But other Omani officials praised
Omani businessman and adviser to the Tetra rech's work and said Mr. praised
Sultan, began making investments in field had been a positive influence in
the United States and elsewhere with trying to curb corruption within Oman
the help of Mr. Hill, Mr. Critchfield
had tchffeld left and and expand the country's educational
several former officials who public services.
the Ford and Nixon Administrations.
according to public records. Dr.
Zawawi, many advisers say, has come
to symbolize American interests in
Oman because he represents so many
American and British companies doing
business there. ----
~ticlUnueO;_
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504420008-2
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504420008-2
In the Masandam province, Tetra
Tech is in charge of speeding the devel-
opment of the sparsely populated but
strategic area and overseeing the
development of communications'
transportation, public
health, water, electricity, roads and
ports and harbors, according to a Tetra
Tech official. The American company
has the same arrangement in another
strategic province, Dhahira.
Some Omani and American officials
rrange-
have criticized the company's a
ments with the Omni he said,
because
ceives Government in
company re-
f in part, the the the large ge payments from the Omani Government to
develop the area. A Tetra Tech spokes-
man defended the size of the contract
on the grounds of the region's strategic
importance and the difficulty and ex-
pense of development in the harsh
mountainous terrain.
Tetra Tech also advises the petro-
leum ministry on hydrocarbons, oil and
gas as well as providing technical staff
to the Omani Public Authority for
Water Resources.
In addition to its operations in the
Middle East, Tetra Tech has worked
elsewhere. In November, a ship the
company had hired, the seaward Ex-
plorer, broke down and drifted into
Cuban waters, and the aircraft carrier
Nimiti was sent to the area. Pentagon,
officials said at the time that the Ni-
frm tawas sent to dissuade the king hostages. Navy officials
said that before developing engine
trouble, the Seaward. Explorer
11 been gathering hydrographic informa-
tion along the Haitian coast under a
'Navy contract.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504420008-2