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Coll 17/30(2) 'Proposed additional outlet to the sea in or near Kuwait territory. Development of port at Um Qasr.' [‎25r] (49/289)

The record is made up of 1 file (141 folios). It was created in 9 Sep 1942-21 Apr 1945. 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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HL C
c opY ^
£ ^
No.200.
(E 5122/124/95).
FOREIGN OFFICE, a. W. 1.
30th September,
! r. r-/ ' ■

Ksl. y.'
3^
Sir,
ja-W
5 r 4
O.Z. !
’ ^ (2?)
1943. .S^
v
I have now considered in consultation with
departments concerned Your Excellency^ desoatoh No. 157
(108/21/43) of the 18th May, in which you reported your
conversations with the Iraqi Prime Minister on the subject
of the suggested cancellation of paragraph 3 of the
notification regarding port dues at Um Qasr.
2. You may find it convenient to have a short history
of the discussions that have taken place between 1938 and 1942
about the construction of a port on the Khor Zubair, and I
accordingly enclose a note on this question which has oeen
prepared in this department. It will be seen that General
Nuri* s account of these discussions is inaccurate in one or
two material points. In particular, His Excellency is wrong
in saying that at no time had it been suggested that the
Sheikh of Koweit was a claimant to the area in which it was
proposed to construct the port. Amongst the aides m 6 moires
which Taufiq Suwaidi prepared for his conversations in London
during his visit in the autumn of 1938, was one on Koweit in
which he specifically mentioned Um Qasr as the probable site
of the port and admitted that the construction of an Iraqi
port there would necessitate a slight rectification of the
frontier. I enclose a copy of this aide m&moire .
3. General Nuri is also inaccurate in saying that the
ownership of the port site had never been called in question.
As you pointed out, the present vague description of the
frontier leaves a considerable area in doubt. Even ii under
the 1940 interpretation the docks fall entirely in Iraq, other
land required for the development of the port is indisputably
in Koweiti territory (see your unnumbered telegram from Basra
of the 25th February, 1942).
4. In these circumstances, while I appreciate the force
of the arguments adduced by you in favour of leaving the
matter in abeyance, I consider that it would be unwise to
allow the issue of the offending notification to pass without
some formal reservation. By this notification the Iraqi
Government have arrogated to themselves certain rights in the
port of Um Qasr which His Majesty’s Government do not
necessarily admit they are entitled to exercise. It is not
proposed at this stage to suggest that the frontier should be
delimited, and the question of what means are open to His
Majesty’s Government to achieve a satisfactory settlement oi
the Koweiti-Iraqi dispute is still under consiaeration. But
in order to safeguard the interests of the Sheikh of howeit
it is essential that His Majesty’s Government should not by
their silence lay themselves open to the imputation 01 having
acquiesced in the notification and the claims implied in it.
I consider, therefore, that a note should be addressee to the
Iraqi Government which, while not inviting any reply, should
make it clear that no action taken by the Iraqi Government
with regard to the port of Um Qasr can be held in any way to
prejudice/
His Excellency ^ _ „ - r „ v
Sir Kinahan Cornwallis, G.C.M.G. [Knight] Grand Cross of [the Order of] St Michael and St George (accolade). , u.b.js..,
etc., etc. , etc.,
Bagdad.

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Content

The file contains papers mainly relating to the port at Um Qasr (Umm Qasr). These papers mostly concern a notification of the schedule of dues and charges to be imposed by the Government of Iraq on vessels navigating to Um Qasr port (printed in the Iraq Government Gazette No. 24 of 14 June 1942); specifically, the response HM Ambassador to Iraq should make to the notification, with regards to the rights of the Sheikh [Shaikh] of Koweit [Kuwait], and the wider question of the disputed frontier between Iraq and Koweit.

The file also includes some correspondence relating to HM Government’s decision to dismantle the port installations at Um Qasr in 1945.

The papers in the file mainly consist of correspondence, 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. internal notes, 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. minutes, and copies of minutes of an interdepartmental meeting of 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. , the Military Sub-Committee, the Admiralty, the War Office, the Foreign Office, and the Port Director at Basra, of 27 August 1943, to discuss Um Qasr.

The main correspondents are the following: 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. , the Foreign Office, the External Affairs Department of the Government of India, 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. , and HM Ambassador, Baghdad (Sir Kinahan Cornwallis). Other correspondents include 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 Kuwait, and the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Persia and Iraq Command.

Extent and format
1 file (141 folios)
Arrangement

The papers are arranged in chronological order from the rear to the front of the file.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the outside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 144; 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. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 2-144; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.

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English in Latin script
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Coll 17/30(2) 'Proposed additional outlet to the sea in or near Kuwait territory. Development of port at Um Qasr.' [‎25r] (49/289), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2893, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100046545181.0x000034> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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