File 1356/1912 Pt 2 'Turco-Persian Frontier:- negotiations at Constantinople. (Mohammerah Boundary)' [‎99r] (206/680)

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CONFIDENTIAL
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•b??' Edward Grey to Sir G. Buchanan (St. Petersburgh).
(No. 458.) R. ^ Foreign Office, June 17, 1913, 5’45 p m.
m ieceiv ed a communication from the Russian Embassy respecting the
I urco-Fersian frontier from Hawizeh to the sea. Following is an extract:—
“ Cette ligne suivrait ... la rive persane meme de maniere a laisser a la Turquie
toute la surface fluviale.
, “ T° llt l e cours du Chatt-el-Arab se trouverait ainsi cede a la Turquie, et le Karoun
n aurait de debouche sur le Golfe jPersique que le bras difficilement navigable de
Bechmetor (Bahmishir): il semblerait que la valenr du Karoun, en tant que fleuve
ouvert a la navigation internationale, en serait sensiblement diminuee.
“Le Gouvernement Imperial pense qu’il serait desirable d’eclaircir comment
pourrait etre garanti la navigation internationale du Chatt-el-Arab ; il desirerait de
meme etre informe sur 1 etat de la question de 1 etablissement d une commission
internationale de navigation sur ce fleuve.
_ “ Le Gouvernement britannique a bien voulu nous communiquer confidentiellement
copie de ce projet le 29 juillet, 1912, et nous comptons formuler a son sujet, par
I’entremise de I’Ambassadeur d’Angleterre, certaines remarques et exprimer quelques
desirs.
D’apres le projet de declaration sur cette frontiere, le Gouvernement britannique
‘ s’engage a inviter le Gouvernement persan a accepter le trace susmentionne de cette
frontiere comme trace definitif.’ Le Gouvernement Imperial n’est pas sans apprehender
que pareille redaction n’occasionne quelque froissement de I’amour-propre du
Gouvernement persan.”
I have been somewhat surprised by the receipt of this communication, as, in the
absence of any criticism by the Russian Government of the document, communicated
to them last July, and suggesting a definite line of frontier along the Shatt-el-Arab, I
had assumed that Russian Government did not dissent from that line. It is true that
the line allots the whole waterway of the Shatt-el-Arab to Turkey, but this was also
so allotted by the mediating commissioners’ line of 1851, to which Persia then acceded ;
and it would, I consider, be impossible to uphold any Persian claim to the mid-channel
boundary having regard to the terms of the Treaty of Erzeroum. But the present
declaration in no way invalidates or supersedes the clause of the Treaty of Erzeroum,
which secures the right of navigation to the Karun via the Shatt-el-Arab.
I have communicated to the Russian Ambassador the draft of our convention with
Turkey respecting the Shatt-el-Arab Riverain Commission, and I think the Russian
Government will be satisfied that it contains adequate safeguards for international
navigation, and that those safeguards are in excess of any which have hitherto existed.
As to the declaration referred to in the last paragraph of the Russian communi
cation, as the line now provisionally agreed to by Turkey is more favourable to Persia
than that awarded by the mediating commissioners, which Persia was ready to accept,
I cannot understand how she could possibly object to it.
In Mr. O’Beirne’s telegram No. 232 of 30th June I was led to believe that Russia
would support His Majesty’s Government in regard to the Mohammerah line, in which
they were particularly interested, and I undertook to support Russia in regard to the
northern part of frontier. I earnestly trust that Minister for Foreign Affairs will not
now raise any difficult}" in regard to the arrangements for the Shatt-el-Arab.
(Repeated to Constantinople, No. 265, and Tehran, No. 275.)
[790-329J