Coll 28/56 ‘Persia. Perso-Turkish & Perso-Russian Frontier Affairs. Rowanduz Trade Route.’ [‎49r] (97/154)

[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.
PERSIA.
[June 21, 1926. j
CONFIDENTIAL.
Section 5.
E 3787/81/34]
No. 1.
£
Sir P. Loraine to Sir Austen Chamberlain.—{Received June 21.)
No. 263.)
Tehran, June 1,1926.
I HAVE the honour to transmit herewith copies of correspondence with His
Majesty’s High Commissioner, Bagdad, on the subject of a conversation with
Dr. Millspaugh in connection with the Rowanduz Road.
I have, &c.
PERCY LORAINE.
Enclosure 1 in No. 1.
Sir P. Loraine to Sir H. Dobbs {Bacjdad).
(No. 74.)
Tehran, June 1, 1926.
’ ROWANDUZ Road.
Dr. Millspaugh has just returned from Tabriz, where he has been with Minister
of Public Works, and called immediately to tell me that he is wholly in favour of
constructing Persian section of the road for motor traffic, is anxious to begin as soon
as ever an understanding can be reached with Irak, and has a credit of 100,000 tomans 10,000 Persian dinars, or a gold coin of that value.
available which he will allot to the purpose, and which is estimated cost of
construction.
He says that no reliable computation of volume of merchandise to travel along
new route can be made, but that Tabriz merchants are keen on it, and say they would
send by it everything which they now send to Constantinople, which they estimate
at 50 per cent, of total exports of Azerbaijan. Principal articles of export are
carpets, intestines and dried fruits.
What procedure do you suggest? Do you think anyone need go from here to
Bagdad to discuss matter? Do you consider that road engineers from either side
should meet at frontier to ensure proper junction of two sections of road ? Persian
section will pass east and south of lake.
As regards trial caravan to Saojbulagh, Dr. Millspaugh thinks there will be
no difficulty in finding back*load, and is favourable to idea. He will consult Tabriz
merchants, and asks whether they could be placed in direct communication with
anyone in Bagdad. He also enquires probable size of caravan.
Enclosure 2 in No. 1,
.. ^ _ r . Sir P. Loraine to Sir H. Dobbs {Bagdad).
(j\0. loO.)
Tehran, June 1, 1926.
’ I HAVE the honour to acquaint your Excellency, with reference to my telegram
No. 74 of the 31st May, with the upshot of the conversation which I had yesterday
afternoon with Dr. Millspaugh, on his return from Tabriz the previous day.
2. It was most agreeable to find that Dr. Millspaugh, whose visit to Tabriz
had coincided with that of the Minister for Public Works, was imbued with the
keenest interest in the projected route and a firm resolve to have it created with the
least possible delay; I might say, indeed, that I have never previously seen
Dr. Millspaugh so positively enthusiastic about a project. He told me to begin
with that he rather doubted obtaining a satisfactory result through the usual
channels of the Persian Government—this, of course, was said in personal
confidence—but he gave his personal assurance that he would do everything in his
power to push the matter rapidly through. He told me that he had been much
impressed by the attitude of the Tabriz merchants generally; they had been badly
hit by the Russian embargo and by the unfair practices of the Russian State trading
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