"حُكَّام الساحل المتصالح، ١٩٠٨-١٩٢٨" [و‎‎٥‎٦] (٨/٧)

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7
Ibn Sand in the Treaty of Jeddah of 1927 ; and to keep a close watch for
action, whether prompted by Ibn Sand himself or the independent work of
over-zealous lieutenants, which can be regarded as calling for remonstrance,
in view of the terms of the treaty. The value of the constant reminder of
British power which is given by a naval patrol cannot be exaggerated ; the
importance of the support of His Majesty's ships to a ruler threatened by
a fanatical hinterland has been illustrated in recent years, though in different
circumstances, in Muscat. The establishment of an air route, should His
Majesty’s Government decide upon that course, will go some way towards
the assertion on the north Arabian coast of the influence of His Majesty’s
Government. The payment of subsidies to the Chiefs, should that prove
ultimately unavoidable, in connection with the establishment of air stations,
may further be of value in consolidating British influence ; the elimination
of British influence from the south Persian shore, and the possibility that
Persia may question the retention of the Residency at Bushire, may lead to
a reconsideration of political arrangements in the Gulf, one effect of which
would be to fix the headquarters of the Resident on or near the Arabian
littoral of the Gulf; but while for the moment the objections urged by the
Government of India to the adoption of the policy of active intervention in
the affairs of the Trucial Coast suggested by the Political Resident (para. 1J
above) appear conclusive, the possibility that at some later stage consideration
of that policy may be necessitated by developments which cannot at present
be foreseen, is one which must be faced.
30. To sum up. His Majesty’s Government by their treaty engagements
control the foreign relations of the Trucial Chiefs, to whom, in addition,
they have promised either directly or by implication a degree of protection
which it is difficult precisely to define. Their written engagements to
the Chiefs have been supplemented by utterances such as that made by
Lord Curzon, when Viceroy of India, on his visit to the Gulf in 1903,
an appeal to the terms of which has so recently as the summer of
the present year' ::: * been made by certain of the Chiefs affected. The
original reason for contracting the engagements in question was the
suppression of piracy, the slave traffic and the arms traffic, and the
preservation of the maritime peace of the Gulf. In the changed circumstances
of the present day, those arguments for the maintenance of a predominant
British influence are supplemented by the wider political considerations
referred to in para. 21 above. But the change in the general situation
which has made the maintenance of British influence on the Trucial Coast
of greater general importance from the Indian and the Imperial point of
view is accompanied by the probable necessity of facing wider liabilities,
or of interpreting in a more generous or a more binding manner the
obligations of His Majesty’s Government for the defence of the interests of
the Sheikhs protected.
V.—Points referred to in connection with Deliberations of the
Persian Gulf Sub-Committee.
31. The following points have been specifically referred to in connection
with the deliberations of the Persian Gulf Sub-Committee :—
(a) On the Arabian coast Koweit and the so-called Trucial Chiefs are
continually threatened by Ibn Saud. Is the maintenance of their
independence necessary for British purposes, and, if so, how is it
to be secured? (P.G. 3 Yin.)
.(b) Policy of His Majesty’s Government vis-d-vis Ibn Saud, with
particular reference to . . . Trucial Chiefs and air route.
(P.G. 6, 2 (c), 1.)
(c) Policy of His Majesty’s Government towards the Trucial Chiefs
(compare Colonel Haworth’s proposal for a greater degree of
inlerference and support, with a view to securing that they shall
not be absorbed by Ibn Saud). (P.G. 6, 2 (c) 2.)
{d) Steps necessary on the north Arabian coast in connection with
slavery (and arms traffic). (P.G. (3, 2 (c), 3.)
Lor. i, 2638-9.
* Tel. from S.N.O.
to Adlty., 1739/30,
July 30"l928, P.4017