Ext 5000/41(1) 'Persia: situation leading up to, and after, the Allied occupation' [‎282r] (563/606)

4 ,
rT1 . „ INDIA DIRECT
[1 his Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty’s Government, and should be kept
[Cypher]
under Lock and Key.]
GENERAL DISTRIBUTION
From: IRAN (PERSIA )
FROM TEHRAN TO FOREIGN OFFICE
/EXT
4050
. ^-1 ,
Sir R« Bullard
No, 419« B. 6.30, p # m. 9th July, 1941.
July 9th, 1941. R. 2.15. a.m. 13th July, 1941.
Repeated to Government of Lidia No. 300.
h b b b b b
My immediately preceding telegram.
The article is obviously intended as reply to your
representations to Iranian (Persian) Minister and to such
accusations as that of Daily Mail referred to in my ,
telegram No. 413. It is disingenuous. Except for about
6 men in aircraft work, all British (of whom majority are
Indian) are in Anglo-Iranian Oil Comoany whose work is
essential to His Majesty’s Government, v/hereas Germans
are scattered about in key positions in railways, arsenal,
wireless stations etc., where fifth column which Germans
have perfected might be particularly dangerous. The Shah
may be afraid to take strict measures against the Germans
lest the German Government should begin to attack him
openly and anneal to the Iranian people against him. This
presupposes that he knows how intensely unnonular he is.
vanity, however, and the fear that he insnires in his
Ministers generally prevented his learning this.
2. I propose writing secret letter to Acting Minister
for Foreign Affairs and to give a copy to the Prime Minister
and I should like to be able to say that I am writing with
your approval. I would state thal for months nast Germans
throughout Iran have been preaching to the effect that all
the grievous economic ills from which they, like many other
countries, are suffering are due to imperialist policy,
and that this is the fault of the British who they stupidly
allege assisted His Majesty to ascend the throne, wished
to maintain him by money paid through Anglo-Iranian Oil
Company and by other means.
3. It is possible that the Shah knows of these
accusations and is refusing to take action against the
Germans for fear of lending colour to the (? accusation]
that he is under British influence, but I think that the
[? balance of] advantage is in favour of my writing as
proposed in paragraph S and bring up the contrast made in
paragraph 1 namely that our interests deoend on the
stability of Iran whereas Germany’s policy throughout
the war has been to bring about the disintegration of
smaller states as preliminary to domination.