File 1247/1912 Pt 2 'Anglo-Turkish Agreement. Acceptance by Sheikhs of Koweit and Mohammerah.' [‎38r] (71/166)

No. 1828, dated Busbire, the 7th (received 16th) June 1913 (Confidential).
From—L irutenant-Colonel Sir P. Z. Cox, K.C.I.E., C.S.I., 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. ,
The Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign Department.
With reference to my telegram No. 918, dated 27th May 1913, I have
the honour to forward, for the information of the Government of India, a copy
of the marginally-cited letter which has
No. 13 c., dated the 2 sth May 1913. since been received from the Political
Agent, Kuwait, with regard to the attitude of Shaikh Sir Mubarak-bin-Subah
towards the Articles of the Anglo-Turkish Convention concerning Kuwait.
No. 13 C., dated Kuwait, the 28th May 1913 (Confidential).
From— Captain W. H. I. Shakespear, 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. , Kuwait,
To—The 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. , Bushire.
With reference to correspondence regarding the Anglo-Turkish negotiations
anent the status of Kuwait, ending with your Second Assistant’s endorsement
No. 1602, dated the 20th May 1913, and in accordance with your instructions,
I have conveyed verbally to Shaikh Sir Mubarak-as-Subah a general idea of
the trend of the Agreement about to be concluded between the British and
Turkish Governments.
2. I visited the Shaikh on the day following the receipt of your instruc
tions and was careful to dwell upon the efforts which His Majesty’s Govern
ment had made to secure above all things the autonomy of Kuwait, an
acknowledgment of our special relations with its Ruler, the recognition as far
as possible of the boundaries claimed by the Shaikh and his more practical
interests such as a definite pronouncement regarding his authority over adjacent
islands and the nearer Bedouin tribes, the prohibition of any interference by
the Porte in Kuwait’s domestic or foreign questions, the exclusion of Turkish
troops from Kuwait territory and the admission of the Shaikh’s right to the
undisturbed enjoyment of his properties on the Shatt-el-Arab. However, as
no negotiations could be conducted without a certain amount of give and take,
it hadl)een found necessary apparently, in order to obtain these solid advan
tages, to give way on some points of detail to avoid wounding Turkish
susceptibilities and it was therefore probable that the Turkish posts at Safwan
and TJmr Kasr would continue, whilst the recognition of Turkish suzerainty
would be likely to entail a demand by the Porte for the residence of a Turkish
representative in Kuwait. The Shaikh heard me patiently enough, occasion
ally interjecting a shrewd question as to exactly what might be involved by
an acceptance of Turkish suzerainty. In reply, I gave the analogy of Egypt,
where the Khedive, though nominally a Turkish Viceroy and a subject of the
Sultan, enjoyed British protection and was for all practical purposes quite
independent of the Porte, who had no word in his internal administration, the
collection of revenue, and the like.
3. The Shaikh rather resented the continuance of the posts at Safwan and
TJmr Kasr, but when I explained that we were endeavouring to secure the
recognition of his boundary as touching these places and that the permanent
location of half-a-dozen Turkish soldiers in a mud fort at these points really
made no practical difference, he seemed inclined to agree. His attitude,
however, was quite different when I intimated that recognition of Turkish
suzerainty might entail the reception of a Turkish Agent in Kuwait, as such
was actually the case in Egypt. The Shaikh was so surprised at the
possibility that he asked me to repeat and explain the matter to him more
tnan once, and when I had done so, he became most vehement in his opposition
to the idea. He begged me to telegraph at once intimating his refusal
to accept any Turkish official under any guise whatever in Kuwait. He used
all the arguments which I had anticipated in my letter No. 8 C. of the 30th
April 1913, and finally said that the presence of one such official, for he knew