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Coll 28/67 ‘Persia. Annual Reports, 1932–’ [‎140r] (279/644)

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The record is made up of 1 file (320 folios). It was created in 6 Dec 1933-27 Mar 1947. It was written in English and French. 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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23
existing suspicions and misunderstandings, it was arranged that a meeting should
take place at Zahidan at which the British representatives would be the military
attache to His Majesty’s Legation, His Majesty’s consul-general for Khorasan
and Mr. Skrine, 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. , Kalat and Chagai. It being an understood thing
that all accusations against the British authorities were dropped, the object of
% ^^ l the meeting would be to examine the possibility of measures to assist the Iianian
Government in future.
140. Discussions were accordingly held at Zahidan between the
and the 21st February, the delegates on the Iranian side being General Jehanbam,
Inspector-General of the Army, and a Colonel Arfa (who is half-English ^ n d is
married to an Englishwoman). The general, who is an old friend of both
Colonel Daly and Mr. Skrine, was, however, only present at one or two of the
meetings.
141. It unfortunately soon became clear that Colonel Arfa’s primary object
was to present a formidable list of indictments against the British. Many of
these were easily disposed of, but others were so vague that it was impossible to
produce any actual evidence to disprove them. The British delegates therefore
tried to transfer discussions from the past to the future and were considerably
surprised to hear that Colonel Arfa’s instructions precluded him fiom eithei
making suggestions himself or listening to any proposals which the British
representatives might put forward.
142. When at last Colonel Arfa succeeded in obtaining fresh instructions,
the British representatives communicated to him orally the measures which t e
Government of India had adopted or were prepared to adopt to assist the Iranian
authorities. These were—
(1) Armed bands of refugees were, and would continue to be, disarmed and
required to furnish security for their good behaviour;
(2) Any arms found in the possession of refugees which had been stolen
from the Iranian armed forces would be returned to the latter;
(3) Arms would not be restored to refugees if they desired to return to Iran
whilst hostilities were in progress against the Government;
(4) Specific tribal leaders whose presence near the frontier might embarrass
the Iranian Government w^ould be removed to the interior;
(5) The Government of India would proclaim to Baluchi tribesmen in British
territory that any form of assistance to or intrigues with Iranian
Baluchis in revolt against the Iranian Government would be severely
dealt with; . .
(6) Levies on duty near the frontier would at all times be m uniform;
(7) In order to minimise clashes with Iranian patrols, levies would not,
except in cases of emergency, patrol up to the limits of the frontier;
(8) Arrangements would be made that the majority of the personnel of
frontier levy posts should consist of men from tribes other than those
of the locality in which the posts were situated and that the
commanders of these posts should not be men of such local tribes.
In return the Government of India would ask the Iranian Government on theii
side to make an important contribution to this policy of co-operation by arlanging
for closer relations between the responsible military authorities m the frontier
areas and the local British consular officers.
143. Colonel Arfa unfortunately received these proposals with very
ill-grace and, after stating that they represented only the bare minimum of
assistance which the Iranian Government had a right to expect from a friendly
Power, advanced three additional suggestions :—
(1) A system of frontier commissars should be established;
(2) The Government of India should refuse to restore to refugees returning
to Iran any arms which might have been confiscated from them on
their entry into British territory; and
(3) The Government of India should remove from the frontier area not
merely individual tribal leaders, but all refugees whose presence there
might be regarded by the Iranian Government as undesirable.
[12998] c 4

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Content

Annual reports for Persia [Iran] produced by staff at the British Legation in Tehran. The reports were sent to the Foreign Office by HM’s Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary A diplomatic representative who ranks below an ambassador. The term can be shortened to 'envoy'. at Tehran (from 1943, Ambassador to Iran). The reports cover the following years: 1932 (ff 2-50); 1933 (ff 51-98); 1934 (ff 99-128); 1935 (ff 129-165); 1936 (ff 166-195); 1937 (ff 196-227); 1938 (ff 228-249); 1939 (ff 250-251); 1940 (ff 252-257); 1941 (ff 258-266); 1942 (ff 267-277); 1943 (ff 278-289); 1944 (ff 290-306); 1945 (ff 307-317); 1946 (ff 318-320).

The reports for 1932 to 1938 are comprehensive in nature (each containing their own table of contents), and cover: an introductory statement on affairs in Persia, with a focus on the Shah’s programme of modernisation across the country; an overview of foreign relations between Persia and other nations, including with the United Kingdom, British India, and Iraq; Persia’s involvement in international conventions and agreements, for example the League of Nations and the Slave Traffic Convention; British interests in or associated with Persia, including Bahrain and Bahrainis resident in Persia, the Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. at Bushire, the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, Imperial Bank of Persia, and the Imperial and International Communications Company; political affairs in Persia, including court and officials, majlis, tribes and security; economic affairs in Persia (government finances and budgets, trade, industry, agriculture, opium production); communications (aviation, railways, roads); consular matters; military matters (army, navy, air force).

Reports from 1939 to 1946 are briefer in nature, Reports from 1941 onwards focusing on the Anglo-Soviet occupation of Persia, and the role of United States advisors in the Persian Government’s administration.

The file includes a divider, which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.

Extent and format
1 file (320 folios)
Arrangement

The file’s reports are arranged in chronological order from the front to the rear of the file. Each report for the years 1932-1938 begins with a table of contents referring to that report’s own printed pagination sequence.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 321; 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.

The file contains one foliation anomaly, f 308A

Pagination: Each of the reports included in the file has its own printed pagination system, commencing at 1 on the first page of the report.

Written in
English and French in Latin script
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Coll 28/67 ‘Persia. Annual Reports, 1932–’ [‎140r] (279/644), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/3472A, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100056661167.0x000050> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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