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'File 86/1 VII (D 101) Kuwait Oil' [‎53r] (120/506)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (249 folios). It was created in 9 Apr 1934-30 Jun 1934. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .

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- 2 -
5. Both Major Holmes and ICr.Chisliolm ccmplained
that their principals at Home appeared to have no conception
of the difficult atmosphere out here in Kuwait and still
less of the suspicious mental '♦make up n of the Shaikh, and
by their refusal to face facts were going out of their way to
endanger the whole success of the negotiations* Thier latest
request to be allwed to proceed to London and explain the
seriousness of the situation out here, had been, they said,
turned down» As far as one could gather from the talk of
these two gentlemen, they appeared to feel that their hands
were being unnecessarily tied by their directors at Home,
who were not in touch with facts nor could keep pace with
an ever changing situation. This of course was all said
in confidence»
6. As I have already said in my telegram under refer
ence, I take a serious view of the Shaikh^s letter and the
situation generally, which seems to have taken a turn for
the worse in the last week* In my opinion unless the
Kuwait Oil Company walk very warily, I should not be sur
prised if the Shaikh were to break off negotiations*
7. I am pretty sure in my own mind now, that His
Majesty's Government's message re Clauses 11 A(d) and 20
of the draft Commercial Agreement, which I was ordered to
deliver had a most unfortunate effect of the Shaikh s mind*
He became furiously suspicious, and from a subsequent con
versation which T had with him he seems to have got it into
his head that h^Ls in process of being bullied by a com
bination of the Kuwait Oil Company in London and His Majesty §
G-overnment, and he probably is determined in his own mind
not to submit to further pressure* The trouble is that we
are once again up against Arab pride, and a false move
K
may easily cause the Shaikh / decide to break with the Kuwait
Oil Company for good*
I have/

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Content

The volume contains correspondence between the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. at Kuwait (Harold Richard Dickson); Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. (Trenchard Craven Fowle); His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); Officials in the India and Foreign Offices (including Sir Louis Kershaw, John Gilbert Laithwaite, George Rendel); the Shaikh of Kuwait (Shaikh Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ); the Air Ministry (Wilfred Ashton McLaughry); the Air Office Commanding, Iraq (Alexander Duncan Cunningham); and representatives of the Kuwait Oil Company (Frank Holmes, Archibald Chisholm), Arabian Development Syndicate, Anglo-Persian Oil Company, and Iraq Petroleum Company.

The correspondence relates primarily to the Kuwait Oil Company's negotiation's with His Majesty's Government and the Shaikh of Kuwait for the Kuwait (also given as Koweit) Oil Concession, focusing on discussions around clauses in both the Commercial and Political Agreements and the Shaikh's concerns over how certain clauses may be perceived both within his own country and in neighbouring ones.

Also discussed are developments in Saudi Arabia with regards to their share of the Nejd-Kuwait Neutral Zone Oil Concession, which was being competed for by the Standard Oil Company of California and the Arabian Development Syndicate, and the British Government's opinions on the situation and their intended approach with regards to the Kuwait share of the concession. The information relating to the Saudi Government's approach to the concession is relayed through letters and reports from Sir Andrew Ryan, HM Minister at Jedda, and contain details of his discussions with representatives of both the Saudi Government and the oil companies.

The correspondence also includes a discussion relating to land at Shuwaikh, identified by the British Government for possible use as an air base, and includes negotiations over the cost of renting the site or the possibility of reserving it for future use. Also included are details of reconnaissance undertaken by the Air Officer Commanding for alternative sites, which was unsuccesful, and correspondence regarding the use of Kuwait Harbour for flying boats and the need to identify suitable locations in the Harbour for moorings.

Extent and format
1 volume (249 folios)
Arrangement

The contents of this volume have been arranged mostly in chronological order.

Folios 236-241 contain file notes detailing each letter contained within the volume, and giving the page numbers each letter commences on enabling the notes to be used as an index.

Some of the letters refer to earlier correspondence in previous volumes, and provide a page and volume reference in order for the earlier correspondence to be identified.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: The volume has been foliated in the top right hand corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. of each folio with a pencil number enclosed in a circle. The foliation sequence commences on the first folio after the front cover, with 1A and concludes on the back cover with number 246. Foliation anomalies: 1A-E.

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English in Latin script
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'File 86/1 VII (D 101) Kuwait Oil' [‎53r] (120/506), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/643, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023586317.0x000079> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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