'File 19/163 II (C 77) Nejd-Bahrain Relations' [‎130v] (275/444)

2
interesting to observe, that Signor Mussolini is now using veiy ^uch the same
language and will probably go very much the same way! He said that he was L
thankful that he had been able to put an end to the Italian connexion with his
" Air Force " by making the excuse that he felt he ought to send his young men ^
to Egypt for training. i n I d
4. On the following morning I was enabled to pay a tormai call at Rafa'a
on His Majesty, who had with him only the Amir Sand and Sheikh Hafiz
Wahba. The interview lasted half an hour, and I found an opportunity to tell '
the King something about the abortive agitation which occurred m Bahrein last
autumn. His Majesty said that he knew well that it had been entirely foreign
in origin, and he proceeded to blame Iraq for the trouble it causes in
neighbouring States by its press and wireless propaganda. The disturbances in
Dubai were also mentioned, and the King made it very clear that his sympathies
were entirely with Sheikh Said-bin-Maktum. He then said that he wished to
give me some friendly advice : never to believe any news from the coast unless
I had verified it myself. He thought that much of our difficulty with the
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coastal sheikhs in the past had been due to inaccurate information from our
previous agent there, and he added that he himself had much the same trouble
with some of his outlying districts. He wished to assure me that on more than
one occasion he had advised Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. sheikhs to place their trust in the
British and to cease making stupid difficulties in regard to air facilities and so
on. His Majesty was politely enthusiastic about Bahrein and the admirable
relations which exist between the A1 Khalifah and ourselves; and at this point
he said that there was one matter which he wished to mention as the friend of all
parties concerned. He had intended to raise it with Sir Reader Bullard if the
latter had been able to come to Bahrein, but he thought it would be proper to
speak to me about it. He had been much criticised for not attempting to make
peace between Bahrein and Qatar : it was a stupid and unnecessary quarrel and 5
ought to be ended. In the subsequent pause I remarked that I also was greatly
concerned at this quarrel and was constantly on the watch for an opportunity to .
initiate a settlement. I thought that both sides were still a little too hot,"but P?'
I should be immensely grateful for any advice which His Majesty could, in his a !
wisdom, give me. The King then closed this part of the discussion by saying ' :irm
that he hoped to hear before long that a settlement had been reached. I expected
the next subject to be Jebel Naksh and Khor-el-Odeid, but he then turned to a
discussion on oil, making it evident that, in his view, the California Arabian
Standard Oil Company did not have his interests at heart. He was thankful
that at last some progress had been made by them, but, after all, he needed oil
royalties very badly and they were only just beginning to come in in very minor
sums. Fortunately, he still had other large areas in his country uncovered by
existing concessions, and these would not go for nothing. I might add here that
I gathei the impression that the whole Damman visit has been somewhat unsatis
factory An East India Company trading post. , the King would not follow the programme which had been arranged; he
ai lived at a banquet organised by the California Arabian Standard Oil Company
and left inside three minutes; he complained to Sheikh Hamad in my hearing
that on one occasion he had been compelled to chase food unsuccessfully all
around the table with a spoon and fork; and altogether he appears to have
reacted somewhat violently to the American passion for schedule.
/1 5 -, ' r r 0 reve !" t no Y to the 9 ourse of events in Bahrein. On the afternoon of
the 4th May a formal entertainment was given by the Manama and Muharraq
unicipahties in the Manama Municipal Garden. The proceedings, once they
began were comparatively brief, being confined to short speeches of welcome read
on behalf of his Highness the Sheikh and the presidents of the two munici
palities and a reply read on behalf of the King by Sheikh Yusuf Yasin The
ATr'T 01 ^ 61 '^ 10 a11 r fP® Cts adl nirable, the King's speech referring
to this Arab island under its Arab ruler." Though it would be foolish to
imagine that the King had any particular motive, thfs part of the speech was
a potent reply to those who talk of British domination and coloXation n
Bahrein or the dictatorship of the British Adviser.
mosnue irf M^nmin '''Tn 'rij'-lvt ' ' ' < ' a ^ ^e King joined in the prayers at the
durmET which Mr TT paid a vlsit to the oil-field and refinery,
compSlrf to S' I" 1 ""
Hl. Majesty h.ld tath fBS
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