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'11/5 Negotiations with Ibn Saud regarding Boundaries of Saudi Arabia' [‎167r] (335/430)

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The record is made up of 1 file (212 folios). It was created in Mar 1944-4 Sep 1949. 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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strategic oonaiderations. Although .the Minlatrv of
Defence decided In 1946 that this area was unsuiLhi. r
major base, the coastal areas might provide minor r K ir*i°v *
and airfields, whose value would be enhanced Utias of ■“**“
particularly if the opposite side of the lersLn^f L ^
occupied by hostile forces. There are a££dy fSS'n.
In this area, of,which two, Sharjah and JBeelrat
while the others ^lyan and Salalah, would only be reaulros'^'
short-range purposea and are only on a care InS .Mirten»n^ f
basis* rwo sloops of the Roy*\ Navy are perm* < iitiv nn *)><«
station and the Royal Ravy also make use of teaeirah ? uii hi “
;ajeBty y Government can reasonably expect to obtain srreater
concessions from the Sheikha and Sultans who no* control thl
coastal area than from a major Arab ruler like Ibn Sand r B
2*:*^*’ lf the8e * inor Arab chieftains flnd^hat
his Majesty a OoverntBent are unable or unwilling to prot*ot
them egainet encroachment by Ibn Saud, they may be ♦
look elaawhere for such protection or'eve^tnclpj ^1? t0
♦ ? he sultan of Muscat, for Instance, when a.k.d
ia a. scty 3 Government what he considered the llmlta of
ahD I .t 0 f^ 1 ^’. C nfJ me l a -? 0 ' 1 i? ciar ‘ r whloh » ttt 80l «e points, falle
_ ^ 0 »iysdh tilne but vrtilch everywhere exceeds the line
claimed by Ibn Saud. He would presumably be moat reluctant
Mo4!var '°WJ a ^ er ° 0nCeaaion ° of hi8 icnnitory to Ibn Saud.
moreover, British reluctance to uphold the claims of ^rab
the neletioas of Hie Majesty's
Government with the statee of howeit and Bahrein, whose
petroleum deposits are of conaiderable importance.
IV. 'Jd& POUCT yiP HI3 ^^aTY'd GOVinaUtRdT
Since 1938 die Majesty'a Government have preferred to allow
vhe whole question to remain in abeyance and Hie ifcjesty's
representatives in Jedda end the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. have consistently
advised against any attest to reopen it* While His Majesty^
Government have nothing to loss by continuing this policy,
circumstances may noake it impossible* Petroleum Concessions
^ n ana bhofar; Ltd* are already carrying out geological
surveys in Osofar up to the "Riyadh Line", while Petroleum
jjevelopment (Qatar) Ltd. have applied for permission to make
a survey of the Jebel Nsksh which lies within their concession
area. Araznco are not known to have any plans for exploration
in the disputed area, but they are anxious to clarify the
boundaries of their concessions from the Saudi <brablan Government
and might be tetnpted to start drilling in order to force the
issue* Such action could hardly be Ignored by His Majesty’s
Government* Similarly, if the operations of British companies
wsre to oome to Ibn oaud ? s notice, he might be provoked into
reopening the frontier question*
The danger exists, therefore, that His Majesty’s Government
might be unable to maintain their present policy* Three
alternative policies have, in the past, been considered*
(s) A unilateral declarstion by His Majesty's Government
that they regard the "Riyadh Line" as the boundary!
(b) An attempt to obtain Xbn Baud's acceptance of the
"Riyadh Line" in exchange for the cession of the
Khor-e1-Odeid ;
Ao) (
• Rlyan is in the Aden Protectorate south of the ares
shown on the sketch attached to this memorandum*

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Content

The file comprises correspondence, memoranda, maps, and other papers relating to questions over the position of Saudi Arabia’s south-eastern frontier adjoining Qatar and the Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. shaikhdoms, notably Abu Dhabi. Negotiations over the frontier had long been deferred by British Government officials, as a result of the Ruler of Saudi Arabia ‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd’s [Ibn Saud] firm stance in negotiations before the Second World War. However, the need for a resolution became increasingly apparent as a result of ongoing oil exploration in Saudi Arabia by the Arabian American Oil Company (Aramco), and exploration in Qatar and Abu Dhabi by Petroleum Concessions Limited (PCL). The principal correspondents in the file include: representatives of the 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. , Foreign Office, Ministry of Fuel and Power; the British Legation at Jedda; 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 Bahrain; and 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. .

The file includes:

  • correspondence, dating from 1944 and 1945, between British Government officials in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , 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. and Foreign Office, discussing the previous difficulties encountered in negotiating Saudi Arabia’s south-eastern frontiers with Ibn Saud, and the agreement that further negotiations be left until after the event of Ibn Saud’s death (ff 2-29);
  • correspondence from late 1945 through 1947, between Government officials on the possible establishment of a neutral zone between Aramco’s concession area in Saudi Arabia, and PCL’s concession area in Qatar. Also, there is some discussion of Aramco’s proposals to begin seabed exploration off the eastern coast of Saudi Arabia (ff 36-59);
  • PCL’s request for permission to conduct seismic surveys at the southernmost limit of their concession area in Qatar (ff 76-95);
  • reports of Aramco survey parties making incursions into PCL’s concession areas in Qatar and Abu Dhabi (ff 104-127);
  • Government criticism of PCL’s delay in exploiting its concession areas in Qatar and Abu Dhabi (f 133);
  • preparations in August 1949 for the reopening of frontier negotiations with the Saudi Government in Jedda. Papers include: a copy of a confidential memorandum with map, dated 2 February 1948, on the south-eastern frontier of Saudi Arabia, prepared by J E Cable of the Eastern Department of the Foreign Office (ff 164-169; copy also at ff 87-91); three further confidential memoranda with maps, prepared by the Eastern Department in 1940, outlining past and present negotiations on the position of the south-eastern frontiers of Saudi Arabia (ff 170-180, ff 181-185, ff 186-188); proposals to send representatives from Qatar and Abu Dhabi to the Jedda negotiations (ff 190-203).
Extent and format
1 file (212 folios)
Arrangement

The file’s contents are arranged in approximate chronological order, from the earliest item at the front to the latest at the end. The file notes at the end of the file (ff 204-212) mirror the chronological arrangement.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover and terminates at the inside back cover; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio. This file has the following foliation anomaly: 111A. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 4-203; these numbers are also written in pencil, and can be found in the same position as the main sequence, but they are not circled. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

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English in Latin script
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'11/5 Negotiations with Ibn Saud regarding Boundaries of Saudi Arabia' [‎167r] (335/430), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/2/465, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100028545189.0x000088> [accessed 18 April 2024]

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