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Coll 30/86(3) 'PERSIA. Relations with Iraq: Shatt-el-Arab. Establishment of an International Conservancy Board.' [‎157r] (320/674)

The record is made up of 1 file, in 2 parts (329 folios). It was created in 14 Apr 1937-5 Mar 1946. 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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into all the executive services operating throughout the
Shatt, Persian personnel in the numbers which would
inevitably be insisted upon by the Persian Government if a
Conservancy Board were set up on the lines of the British
experts draft of December, 1931. Nor does it seem that such
an influx of Persian personnel could for long be resisted
even if the British Government were in some way able to
obtain representation on the Board.
12. As regards tactics, the issue may he summarized as
being whether the Iraq.! Government should put forward a draft
Convention as a basis of negotiation or do nothing and leave
the initiative to the Persians, Mr. McDougall is in favour
of Iraq taking the initiative herself in the negotiations for
the Convention and I am inclined to agree with him. Firstly,
because by doing so the Iraqi Government would always be able
to claim that they had done their best to carry out their
_ . 4 . - „-7 o tt rvf the Protocol and, secondly,
obligations under Article II ol tne nu 0
becuase I fear that if the initiative is left to the Persians
they will probably put forward an unsatisfactory draft, and
my feeling is that it would be more difficult for the Iraqis
to contest the reasonableness of the Persian proposals than
which they themselves had put forward,
to support proposals which tney
v, + '„ oosition would be all the weaker if,
The Iraqi Government s posino
for the reasons discussed above, they decided to drop tne
plan for a fully powered executive, navigation and^
tn s -hut were confronted with a Persian drai
conservancy Board, ^
. '.f, that out forward in August 19ub
which followed the lines of ehat put
• + 1 letter No. 367 of August 23rd, 1935),
(see Tehran printed lett -
, „ themselves communicated their own scheme for
before they had themselves
t- n of national services under a joint advisory
the creation ol nabunaj.
oard
th ee reasons I consider that, on the whole, it
13= For these reason, i

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Content

The file concerns the possibility of establishing an international Conservancy Board for the Shatt-el-Arab (also referred to as the Shatt-al-Arab) between the governments of Iraq, Iran (also referred to as Persia), and the United Kingdom.

The board was intended to ensure the efficient maintenance and navigation of the Shatt-al-Arab waterway. The United Kingdom was involved because of the close interests of British shipping in the conservancy of the Shatt-al-Arab.

The papers cover: Perso-Iraqi frontier negotiations; drafts, signing (July 1937), and ratification (June 1938) of the Perso-Iraqi Frontier Treaty; Turkish approval of the frontier negotiations; the signing of the four power non-aggression pact between Iraq, Iran, Turkey, and Afghanistan (the Saad-Abad [Saadabad] Pact), 1937; Abadan anchorage; Foreign Office memoranda and minutes of meetings concerning a convention for the conservancy of the Shatt-al-Arab; the question of British participation in the convention; lighting and buoying; the involvement of Sir John Ward [serving with the Iraqi Government] in the discussions; the opposition of the Iranian Government to British involvement; the involvement of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC); the Port of Basra (including Foreign Office memorandum, folios 77-83); the Rooka Channel; and renewed discussion of the issue in 1945, including the importance of the Shatt-al-Arab for tanker traffic to supply Britain's war needs in the Far East.

The main correspondents are the Foreign Office, the British Ambassador to Iraq, and HM Minister, Tehran.

The French language content of the file consists of approximately twenty folios of diplomatic correspondence and treaties.

There are no papers in the file dated 1941-44.

The file includes a divider, which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.

Extent and format
1 file, in 2 parts (329 folios)
Arrangement

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

Physical characteristics

Foliation: this file consists of two physical parts. The foliation sequence commences at the first folio of part one (ff 1-169) and terminates at the last folio of part two (ff 170-329); 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; these numbers are printed, but are not circled. A previous foliation sequence, which is circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out. The front and back conservation covers (parts one and two), have not been foliated.

Written in
English in Latin script
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Coll 30/86(3) 'PERSIA. Relations with Iraq: Shatt-el-Arab. Establishment of an International Conservancy Board.' [‎157r] (320/674), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/3804, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100047087709.0x000079> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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