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Coll 7/4 'Afghanistan: purchase of arms from Great Britain' [‎265r] (534/1146)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (568 folios). It was created in 2 Jan 1930-19 Feb 1935. 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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practice no difficulties have arisen, lut it is scarcely
possible to lay down a hard and fact definition and each
application ipust in the last resort be treated on its
merits. xhe treaty procedure has never been applied to
sporting shot-guns and air rifles.
13. The working rules treat as a single operation
what is technically two distinct operations;' (a) the issue
of a license for the export of arms from this country and
(b) the granting of permission for their transit across
Indian territory. In dealing with the Afghan Government it
is necessary that His Majesty 1 s Government and the Government
of India act together, not only in fact but in appearance.
Although, therefore the distinction between ‘the two
operations should be borne in mind, they should be
regarded as mutually dependent. For His Majesty’s
Government to issue an export licence when the Government
of India might clearly have grounds for detaining the arms
would be disingenuous; equally it is desirable that the
Government of India should not, save for very grave reasons
or in the circurastances foreseen in the working rulos,
detain arms for which His Majesty’s Government nu\ e ox±ce
issued a licence (the detention of arms as a sanction unaer
the Treaty is not of course being considered nere).
majority of eases i.e. those in which a formal notification
has been made to His Majesty’s Minister at x^abul, bhe
little likelihood of this happening, although ouboe^
information may at times render detention necessary. In
'’diplomatic rr cases, 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. will explain
Government of India the circumstances in which
has been issued and will state whetner o- not
4 -_ -hp on e in which
Majesty’s Government consider Hie Ccx^
transit should be allowed irrespective of a notificati
by the Afghan Government.

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Content

The volume contains correspondence regarding the purchase by the Afghan Government of arms, ammunition and explosives from a number of sources, including the War Office and British and French firms.

It includes communications between British officials (HM Minister in Kabul and the Foreign Office) and the Afghan Foreign Ministry and Afghan legations to Paris and London, regarding: requests to purchase and transport materials; negotiations over customs dues and transport costs; requests for the recommendation of arms firms; and the quality of materials supplied by private companies.

Folios 552-567 consist of a memo titled 'Applications for the Export of Arms and Munitions to Afghanistan', providing details of the procedures to be followed, and a copy of the Anglo-Afghan Treaty (1921).

The file also contains correspondence between British and Indian officials (the War Office, the Board of Trade, 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. Political Department, the Government of India Political Department, the Collector of Customs at Karachi) and a number of British firms, regarding: informal requests for permission to sell or transport munitions to the Afghan Government; applications for export licences; concerns over the quality and source of munitions; and details of alleged attempts by a German firm to supply arms, in possible violation of Article 170 of the Treaty of Versailles. The firms include: Messrs A Fleming; Gray, Dawes & Company; Mackinnon Mackenzie & Company; Imperial Chemical Industries Limited; and Machine Tools (India) Limited. The correspondence also includes information on the involvement of the French firm L'Office Générale de l'Air, and its dealings with Messrs A Fleming.

The volume includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. This is placed at the end of the correspondence (folios 4-5).

Extent and format
1 volume (568 folios)
Arrangement

The papers are arranged in rough chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 570; 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.

Written in
English in Latin script
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Coll 7/4 'Afghanistan: purchase of arms from Great Britain' [‎265r] (534/1146), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2173, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100056050957.0x000087> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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