File 2764/1904 Pt 5 'Baghdad Railway: Anglo-Turkish negotiations; concessions proposed in respect of Kowait; negotations with Hakki Pasha in London; Anglo-Turkish agreement.' [‎166r] (344/536)

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ASIATIC TURKEY AND ARABIA.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[Amended Copy.]
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[29225] No. 1 .
[July 9. j
Section 2.
Joint Letter addressed to Sir Edward (drey, July 9 , 1912.
blr ’wT?i - 4 -u V + i . Foreign Office, July 9, ]9I2.
WN nave the honour to submit the accompanying amended draft of an Ancdo-
Turkish convention for the future conservancy of the Shatt-el-Arab.
We have, besides various other points, taken into careful consideration the several
comments made by the British Besident in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. and hy the Government of
India upon the original draft; but, m revising the convention, we have introduced
amendments only in so far as they are consistent with the recognition of Turkish rights
over the whole waterway.
We understand that it is a primary object of His Majesty’s Government and of
the Turkish Government to exclude other Powers from representation on the com
mission, and that the objection of His Majesty’s Government to such representation
is partly based upon the belief that it might be pleaded by the Powers who enjoyed it
as a ground, for intervention on their part in the control of police, and other matters of
administration, in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. .
The principal difficulty which presents itself undoubtedly lies in the possibility
that foreign Powers, if not represented, may decline to allow dues, which will be
necessary to meet the expenses of the commission, to be levied on their shipping.
This difficulty is inevitable in the case of a country which is subject to the
capitulations, and so long as Turkey desires to preserve the commission as a purely
Turkish institution there must be some risk that foreign ships may escape payment of
the dues.
Nevertheless, we think an effort should be made to levy dues, and to provide by
this means a revenue for the commission, and to do this in such manner as shall give
least ground for foreign objection.
The difficulty arises from the absence of any method by which payment of the
dues by ships can be enforced by judicial procedure. We do not think that Turkey’s
right to improve the navigation of her internal waterways or to charge reasonable dues
on shipping in return can be doubted, but so long as the payment of such dues
could only be enforced by proceedings in the consular court of the Power whose flag
the ship flies there is no certainty that such proceedings would be effective.
The risk can, in our opinion, be considerably reduced by the plan of levying one
consolidated due to cover all heads of service rendered—lighting, buoying, dredging,
pilotage, wharves, &c., because ships would in almost all cases require the services
of a pilot, and it would be possible to insist on payment of the consolidated due
before the pilotage service was rendered. We cannot report that in our opinion this
would enable dues to be levied in every case, because it is conceivable that a ship might
refuse to employ a pilot in the service of the commission or give any other opportunity
for obtaining the payment of the due in advance.
If the ships were left alone, it is not likely that they would take this course,
because it would not be worth their while. It is possible, however, that some foreign
Power might encourage a hostile attitude on the part of its shipping for the purpose
of forcing the Turkish Government to admit it to representation on the commission
to the same extent as Great Britain.
We do not think that this risk is very serious, and we recommend that it should
be faced. AVe think it is improbable that any Power would consider that sufficient
political advantage was to be obtained from adopting this course. It would certainly
irritate the Porte, and it could not be carried out without injuring the commerce of
its subjects and its shipping. _ . . ,
The long period during which Great Britain has provided and maintaine
buoys, &c., at the mouth of the Shatt-el-Arab and the many services which she lias
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