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Coll 17/20(1) 'Anglo-Iraqi Treaty of 1930. Revision of Treaty 1948' [‎132r] (263/304)

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The record is made up of 1 file (149 folios). It was created in 20 Jan 1933-3 Feb 1948. 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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i
THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF HIS BRITANNIC MAJESTY'S GOVERNMENT
y July 10, 1933.
EASTERN (Iraq).
456 CfT " 1
CONFIDENTIAL.
No. 1.
[E 3738/870/93]
Mr. Ogilvie-Forbes to Sir John Simoih (rt&Mrwed July 10.)
Bagdad, June 26, 1933.
s Mr.
" 405.)
’ FOR some weeks prior to the departure of His Majesty’s Ambassador in May
last there had been a good deal of agitation in the Bagdad press against the
Anglo-Iraqi Treaty of 1930. Some of the airy and vapid talk of the sacred
aspirations of the Iraqi people found its echo in Earliament, and speculation was
rife as to whether His Majesty King Feisal would find an opportunity to broach
the question of treaty revision in London, and if so how far he would be successful
in removing those provisions to which the extreme Nationalists profess to object.
2. During the course of an interview with Sir Francis Humphrys on the
17th May last, His Majesty expressed the view that, in view of his own impending
departure, it was essential that the position of the Iraqi Government in regard
to their relations with Great Britain should be made clear, if only to dissipate
certain current misconceptions regarding the object of his visit to London. He
deplored the pusillanimity of his Ministers, all of whom protested anxiety
individually to preserve the closest relations with Great Britain. Not one had
the courage, however, to come into the open and do his share towards the settle
ment of the outstanding questions arising from the treaty for fear that his
Cabinet colleagues would make political capital at his expense. This drifting
with the stream had gone far enough, and he had decided that, before he left Iraq,
the Government must make an unequivocal statement of policy which would
eliminate the possibility of any misunderstanding concerning the attitude of the
Iraqi Government towards Great Britain. He hoped it would be possible for such
a statement to be made on the introduction of the budget a few days later.
3. His Majestv left Iraq on the 5th June, but neither before his departure
nor since have I been able to discover any trace of an unequivocal statement by the
Government on the lines suggested on the 17th May. On the contrary, during the
opening debate on the budget, the Prime Minister, replying to several pointed
questions on the relationsKetween Great Britain and Iraq, said :
‘ ‘ W^Mve no new foreign policy other than of aiming at the realisation,
at the earliest opportunity, of the sacred aspirations of the people, which
have been and continue to be the aspirations of every patriotic citizen. We
have placed this sacred object before our eyes and are proceeding for its
realisation with wisdom and resolution, guided by the unerring and whole
some advice of His Majesty.
“ The acceptance by His Majesty of the invitation extended to him by
His Majesty the King of Great Britain will be most effective in strengthening
the friendly relations between the two kingdoms. We are hopeful of
realising the greatest material and moral benefits from this auspicious visit.
“ The high political position now enjoyed by our beloved country among
the nations of the world will improve in proportion to the future cultural
and constructive achievements of the country and to the extent to which we
shall have shown ourselves able to improve the administration of justice and
to satisfy the world that we have taken all possible effective steps to enable
us to undertake the defence of our country by our own hands.”
4. On the 3rd June, during the resumed discussion on the budget, Yasin
Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. , the Minister of Finance, replying to the former Prime Minister, said :
“ I say that there is no doubt that the treaty was a step forward.
“ It should be understood that all treaties are subject to ratification
by legislative councils, and that the Iraqi nation has not yet been represented
on such councils. Our admission to the League of Nations was due to a
promise given by Great Britain in 1929. therefore we cannot credit to the
treaty our admission to the League.”
5. There has, it is true, been a diminution in the press criticism of the treaty
since the King’s departure, but I cannot bring myself to believe that this is, in
anv wav due to the evasive statements of the Government’s chief spokesmen.
I have, &c.
G. OGILVIE-FORBES.
[851 k—1]

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Content

The file contains papers relating to the Treaty of Alliance (Anglo-Iraqi Treaty) of 1930 between the United Kingdom and Iraq, and the revised Treaty of Alliance of 1948.

Papers dated January 1933 to December 1934 mostly concern the following: the attitude and policy of King Feisal and the Iraqi Cabinet towards the Treaty of 1930; complaints by George Arthur Ogilvie-Forbes, HM Representative, Baghdad, on behalf of the British Government, to the Government of Iraq about the hostile attitude of the Iraqi press towards the 1930 Treaty and the United Kingdom; the death of King Feisal [Faysal I] and the attitude of the new King, King Ghazi [Ghazi I]; and the desire of the Iraqi Government to publish certain explanatory notes on the Treaty of 1930.

Papers dated from March 1946 to February 1948 relate to the revision of the Treaty of 1930, and the signing of the new Treaty of Alliance of 1948. They include papers concerning the political consequences of the signing of the Treaty, including ‘rioting’ in Baghdad and the resignation of the Iraqi Prime Minister Saleh Jabr [Salih Jabr].

The file does not include any papers for the period January 1935 to February 1946.

The papers dated 1933 to 1934 largely consist of copy correspondence between Sir Francis Humphreys, HM Ambassador to Iraq, and the Foreign Office (including letters addressed to Sir John Simon, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs). The papers dated 1946 to 1948 largely consist of correspondence and copy correspondence between the following: HM Embassy, Baghdad, and the Foreign Office; 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. and the Board of Trade; the Commonwealth Relations Office and the governments of Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Newfoundland, and Southern Rhodesia; and Saiyid Saleh Jabr, Prime Minister of Iraq, and Ernest Bevin, British Foreign Secretary.

The file also includes a copy of the Draft Anglo-Iraqi Treaty dated 9 January 1948, and a published copy of the Treaty of Alliance between the United Kingdom and Iraq, dated 15 January 1948.

The file includes a letter in Arabic from Mohamed Fadhil Al Jamali, Iraqi Ministry for Foreign Affairs, to Hugh Stonehewer-Bird, HM Ambassador to Iraq, 2 August 1946 (folio 74), for which there is an English translation.

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 (149 folios)
Arrangement

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

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 152; these numbers are written in pencil 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 and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script
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Coll 17/20(1) 'Anglo-Iraqi Treaty of 1930. Revision of Treaty 1948' [‎132r] (263/304), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2881A, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100066256409.0x000040> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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