Coll 30/7 'Persian Gulf, Russia: Russian Trade Activities' [‎153r] (308/573)

[This Document is the Property at His Britannic Majesty’s Government.]
PERSIA.
CONFIDENTIAL.
^ 636/99/34]
Sir 7V. Clive to Sir Austen Chamberlain.—[Received February 4.)
(No. 3^. Confidential.)
Sir, Tehran, January 17, 1929.
I HAVE the honour to report that on the evening of the 9th January the Soviet
Ambassador entertained the leaders, as well as the rank and file, of the Tehran press
to dinner.
2. I am told that it was a sumptuous entertainment and was very well managed,
and the speech made by the Ambassador, as well as the reply thereto made by Dashti,
the editor of the “ Shafagh Sorkh,” was of the kind often engendered by the feeling of
contentment which follows gastronomical satisfaction.
3. The Ambassador was so happy at the apparent success of the entertainment
that he began his speech by a promise that the entertainment would be an annual
one. He then reviewed Perso-Soviet relations of the past year and expressed great
satisfaction. He dwelt on the period that had elapsed since the Perso-Soviet Treaty
of 1921, and ascribed to that treaty of equality the success that had since attended
Persia’s efforts to abolish “ unequal ” treaties with the rest of the world, especially the
“ imperialistic ” Governments. The press, he asserted, had also played its part in
educating Persian opinion up to that standard of equality. He had not much use for
the foreign press, which he accused of continually spreading false news about the
Soviet internal situation. To correct the erroneous impression made by articles of the
foreign press he advised his audience to read the Soviet journals, which were the
organs enjoying the greatest liberty of criticism of any country in the world. Having
made this most extraordinary statement, M. Davtian went on to review Perso-Soviet
trade for 1928, which, he said, had amounted to 140 million roubles. He described
this as a great success, and expatiated on the fact that the sound economic situation of
the Soviet was one of the greatest factors for the development of Persian trade. Trade
and commerce went hand-in-hand with politics, and if trade relations were flourishing
it could be taken for granted that political relations were good. He stated that the
Soviet policy towards Persia was immutable, and that Persia, when faced with a serious
situation, could always rely on the friendly help of the Soviet.
4. Dashti replied, as might have been expected, by extolling the heroic deeds of
the Persian press and the friendly attitude adopted both in commerce and politics
towards Persia by Soviet Russia.
5. After dinner the Ambassador withdrew into an inner room accompanied by
the editors of the three most important Tehran papers, and I enclose herewith a
memorandum of what is stated to have passed there between them. This information
was communicated to a member of my staff by one of the guests.
6. Reports have been received previously of “ commercial presents ” being made
by the Soviet Embassy to Persians from whom favours in return might be expected,
but the help extended to the Persian press had usually taken the form either of
monthly payments in cash or a lump sum paid for some special purpose. It may be
that the Soviet are not satisfied with the results obtained by the former methods ; the
article which recently appeared in the “Iran,” translation of which I had the honour
to transmit to you under cover of my despatch No. 521, Confidential, of the
19th December, caused a great flutter in the Soviet dovecots. In any case, the grant
of licences to export Persian merchandise to Soviet Russia will save money for the
Embassy here, and it will be the Persian merchant who will in reality pay the price of
the favours bestowed on the press by the Soviet Ambassador.
7. I am sending a copy of this despatch, with its enclosure, to the Foreign
Secretary to the Government of India.
I have, &c.
R. H. CLIVE.
F
1 798
February 4, 1929.
Section 5.
No. 1.
[716 d—5]