'Muscat: Proposed Tariff Treaty' [‎168r] (343/509)

10 ,.•.
Muscat, in practice no preference would be given to ^rencn
or American goods. The proposal however is somewhat similar
to that contained in paragraph & of 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. le'-ter Lc.P.^
6567 of 27th November 1929 to the Foreign Office, and was o
objected to by the Foreign Office for the masons given in par
graph 3 of their letter No.2.6207/166/91 of 31st January 1930.
From a perusal of those letters, however, it would seem that
there was some misapprehension regarding ■■•*±6 position o^.
-■ranee and the United States. Under its treaties with those
Powers, the Muscat State cannot charge more than 5% on goods
imported in ships belonging to them; there is net mug nev e v e v
to prevent the State charging any rate of duty wnicu. tne^
choose on French or American goods not imported in French
or American vessels, and as no French or American vessels
of
call at Muscat nowadays, the goods/those countries would not
obtain any preferential rates,
8, Further, the situation vis-a-vis these two Powers has
since dev^ed considerably, and they have both expressed
their Y /illingness to a gree to an increase in the customs
tariff# Moreover in his telegram ■■ o»^< , - • ^
J 193'0( of whxch a copy was forv/arded to me under Foreign and
Political Department endorsement !To,D-3444-lT/3C of 30th a±y
i qjo ) , His Majesty* s Ambassador at Washington repoited ^ua-t
the Under Secretary had written semi-ofTicially stalm^ tu^u,
in the event of limited non -discriminatory increases being,
made in duties on goods imported into Muscat, pending .nc
conclusion of anew treaty with the United States, 1 ^
Department would probably not have occasion to protest.
9 Further, the French Government have agreed to the
modification to Article 10 of the Treaty of 1344 between
France and Muscat - vide note addressed by the Ministry for
Forei- n Affairs to the British Embassy (copy of which was
forwarded to me under Foreign and Political Endorsement No,
F.225-N/29 of 10th December 1930K