'File No. II/9 Foreign Dept Memoranda of Information re. affairs in Persian Gulf, Maskat & Arabian Shore of the Persian Gulf. Nov '07 - Dec '08.' [‎24r] (49/132)

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international measures to facilitate the identi
fication of dhows seemed necessary in the
opinion of the Government of India.
The Government of India were not, it was
added, specially interested in Aden, however,
and they recognised that measures taken there
must be such as to meet British necessities in
Africa.
As regards Maskat and the Persian
Gulf the case was very different. There it was
of immense importance to the Government
of India, as well as to Turkey and Persia to
stop the trade. The Sheikhs of Koweit and
Bahrein and the Trucial Sheikhs had prohi
bited the import of arms into their territories,
and this was also contraband in Persia and
Turkey. Maskat was the only place where it
was licit, and here international jealousies
alone had prevented a similar prohibition. The
Sultan was actively co-operating with the
British authorities by prohibiting the landing
of Pathan arms traders at Maskat and the
Government of India believed that his
action was largely to be ascribed to the support
given to the British by France. If that
support was continued, he might agree to
prohibit the trade altogether at present.
It was suggested that before the conference
met, France if not also the other Powers
possessing commercial treaties with Maskat,
might be induced to agree to an amendment
of the treaties and prohibition of import of
arms. Great Britain, as the Power most
interested, would meet the cost of com
pensating the Sultan for the loss of his Customs
duty on arms, and in return for this
might induce him, with the consent of
France, to entrust his Customs management
to the Government of India or at any rate
to appoint a British officer as Superinten
dent of Customs. The Government of India
invited attention to Major Cox’s views of the
danger of doing anything to endanger British
predominant control at Maskat.
If the measures such as those already
placed before the Secretary of State could be
adopted, the British Government could show
the Powers that effective steps had been taken
to stop the traffic at Maskat and in the Gulf
generally, and it might then be possible, while
applying the General Act to the area, to
abstain from taking further steps internation
ally therein.
The Government of India suggested the
following remarks if the course indicated
above was impracticable and the case of the
Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. must come before the conference
for full discussion :—
(a) The representation of the Sultan at
the Brussels conference. The Government of
India did not know what was intended, but