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Coll 6/67(1) 'Boundaries of South-Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [‎55r] (114/794)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (392 folios). It was created in 13 Jun 1934-13 Dec 1934. It was written in English and Arabic. 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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\
v X
-7—
present avail aisle*
ViHnlle agreeing as to the ohiection to a solution on the
"basis, ol tne creation of a Neutral Zone 5 he said that he did not
think that sou-e variant of this solution ought to he completely
ruled out of court at the present stage. If there were to he
any chance of persuading ibn Saud to agree to a Neutral
Zone^ say 5 50 miles from East to 'west running from the base
of the Qatar peninsula to the 20th parallel of latitude ?
it would be well worth our while to face the inconvenience
involved on the assumption that Ibn Saud would have no
rights to the hast of such a zone.
Speaking personally, however 5 he was much attracted
by the solution suggested in Mr. Hendel's letter of 7th
November which was based on previous discussion with 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. . Clearly the details would need closer
consideration 3 and the situation might be affected by the
information awaited from Bushire s but prima faci e it had
much to commend it. In particular ? it would ease the
position as regards applications to develop oil in the
Trucial States A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. . Our present policy was to Sberilise
those States from the oil point of view* but it might De
impossible to maintain that attitude. If * however 9 we
could secure the adoption of the ring fence solation o± tue
boundary problem and the ring fence was sufficiently deep,
it would be possible for us to agree to the grant ox a
concession^ for example, in Abu Dhabi* to cover half or
three-quarters of the distance between the coast and tne
southern border of the ring fence. As in the case of
Qatar * we might offer the Sheikh protection within the
area of the concession in return for his giving iu to a
company designated or approved by us, while between the
southern border of the concession and the border of the
ring fence the Air Ministry would have the room to deal
with raiders s etc. , to which they attached so much
importance

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Content

This volume primarily concerns British policy regarding the south-eastern boundaries of Saudi Arabia.

It includes interdepartmental discussion regarding the approach that the British Government should take in reaching a settlement with King Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] over the demarcation of the boundaries.

Much of the correspondence discusses the legal and international position of what is referred to as the 'blue line' (the frontier which marked the Ottoman Government's renunciation of its claims to Bahrain and Qatar, as laid down in the non-ratified Anglo-Ottoman Convention of 1913 and redefined and adopted in the Anglo-Ottoman convention of the following year), a line which is not accepted by Ibn Saud as being binding upon his government.

The volume features the following principal correspondents: His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. (Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven William Fowle); the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. , Kuwait (Lieutenant-Colonel Harold Richard Patrick Dickson); the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. , Bahrain (Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch); the Chief Commissioner, Aden (Bernard Rawdon Reilly, referred to in the correspondence as Resident); the Secretary of State for the Colonies (Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister); the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Sir John Simon); the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs; officials of 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. , the Foreign Office, the Colonial Office, the War Office, and the Air Ministry.

Matters discussed in the correspondence include the following:

  • Whether the British should press Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] for a general settlement of all outstanding major questions.
  • The extent of territory that the British should be prepared to include in any concession made to Ibn Saud.
  • The British response to what are referred to as Ibn Saud's 'ancestral claims' to territories east of the blue line.
  • Sir Andrew Ryan's meetings with Ibn Saud in Taif, in July 1934.
  • Meetings held at the Foreign Office between Sir Andrew Ryan, George Rendel (Head of the Foreign Office's Eastern Department), Fuad Bey Hamza (Deputy Minister for Saudi Foreign Affairs), and Hafiz Wahba (Saudi Arabian Minister in London), in September 1934.
  • The boundaries of a proposed 'desert zone', suggested by Rendel, where Ibn Saud would hold personal rather than territorial rights.
  • Saudi-Qatari relations.
  • Whether tribal boundaries should be considered as a possible solution to the boundary question.

Also included are the following:

The Arabic material consists of one item of correspondence (an English translation is included).

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

Extent and format
1 volume (392 folios)
Arrangement

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

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 394; 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. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

Written in
English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script
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Coll 6/67(1) 'Boundaries of South-Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [‎55r] (114/794), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2134, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100056574348.0x000073> [accessed 19 March 2024]

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