Coll 17/18(2) 'Smuggling between Kuwait and Iraq' [‎93r] (185/889)

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THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF HIS BRITANNIC MAJESTY’S GOVERNMENT
EASTERN (Iraq).
CONFIDENTIAL.
[E 5841/1982/93]
October 5, 1938.
Section 2.
Copy No.
[Amended Copy.]
Record of Conversation with the Iraqi Minister for Foreign Affairs held at the
Foreign Office at 6 p.m. on October 4, 1938.
Present:
Iraqi Minister for Foreign Affairs.
Major Edmonds (British adviser to the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior).
Mr. Baxter, Foreign Office.
Mr. Crosthwaite, Foreign Office.
Mr. Baxter enquired whether the Iraqi Foreign Minister wished to begin
by discussing in detail the matters which formed the subject of the aide-memoire
handed by his Excellency to Mr. Butler at Geneva, or whether there were any
other matters arising out of that morning’s conversation with the Secretary of
State which his Excellency wished to discuss.
The Iraqi Foreign Minister said that he would like to discuss in detail the
subjects dealt with in his aide-memoire.
Aerodrome Guards.
As regards the question of aerodrome guards, Taufiq Suwaidi referred to
the delay which had taken place in giving effect to article 4 of the annexure to
the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty of Alliance. It was true that various proposals had been
made since the entry into force of that treaty in 1932, but some of these proposals
were not in accordance with the provisions or the intention of the treaty. Discus
sions had taken place at Bagdad in 1935, and a certain measure of agreement
had been reached, but there were still two outstanding points on which the views
of His Majesty’s Government had never been received. It was with a view to
providing a solution of the whole problem that he had now suggested that the
aerodrome guards should be detached either from the regular Iraqi army (in
which case the commanding officer would be a British officer attached to the
British military mission) or from the Iraqi police. In either case, the Iraqi
military or police forces would be placed under the control of the British Air
Officer Commanding, and in addition, if the forces were to be provided by the
Iraqi army, there would be a British commanding officer. He thought that a
solution on these lines would be entirely in accordance with the treaty.
Mr. Baxter drew attention to the provisions of the treaty article, stating that
the special guards should be provided ‘ £ upon such conditions as may be agreed
upon between the high contracting parties,” and that the Iraqi Government
would ‘ ‘ secure the enactment of such legislation as might be necessary for the
fulfilment of the conditions referred to above.” Various efforts had been made
to reach agreement as to the nature of this legislation to be introduced by the
Iraqi Government. The last proposals, it would be recalled, had been handed
to the Iraqi Government by Sir M. Peterson in May last. It did not appear that
the Iraqi Government had yet replied to that communication, and it was there
fore only now that His Majesty’s Government learnt that these proposals were
unacceptable to the Iraqi Government.
As regards the proposals now put forward by Taufiq Suwaidi, it was
regretted that neither was entirely welcome to the British authorities concerned.
The main difficulty was, to speak perfectly frankly, the problem of the control
of these aerodrome guards. His Excellency had stated that they would be under
the control of the Air Officer Commanding, but in certain respects these guards,
being part of the Iraqi military or police forces, would also be under the direct
control of the Iraqi Government. It seemed to the British authorities concerned
that this divided control might lead to difficulties and disputes between the British