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'CONFIDENTIAL 86/31 VOL. B.64 OIL IN ITS RELATION TO THE MIDDLE EAST' [‎107r] (218/578)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (285 folios). It was created in 11 Oct 1940-22 Aug 1945. 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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It may b© that there is some intention of raising
the matter again with the Shaikh during Holmes’
forthcoming visit to Kuwait and, if so, it seems
to us a matter for consideration whether sane
political support should not be given to the
suggestion that was mooted earlier tha+ , in the
absence of any prospect of an agreed settlement
of the Saudi-Kuwait frontier, the Shaikh should
follow I bn Baud’s example in granting rights oyer
his share of the Neutral Zone to the Kuwait Oil
Company, the two companies then exploiting jointly
and the two Kulers sharing royalties.
4, Jebel Nakhsh, at the base of .the Qatar
Peninsula, has hitherto been the mam stumbling -
block in the way of a settlement with I bn Baud
in regard to his s> uth-east frontier. (A most
lucid account of the discussions which have proceed
ed with Ihn Saud on the subject of this frontier
is contained in Foreign Office Memorandum
No.15996 of the 30th June 1940) The discovery of
oil by Petroleum Development (Q^tar) Limited at
Jebel Dukhan close by - in part of the same
geological feature - will not, we imagme, dispose
Thn Saud to diminish his claim on Jebel Nakhsh
while His Majesty’s G-overnment on the other hand,
are committed to the Shaikh aid Petroleum
Development (Qatar) Limited in respect of this
area. If this difficulty were got out of the way
it might be possible to reach a settlement with
I bn Saud over the rest of his South-Eastern
frontier, for with development at Has Tanura it
may well be that I bn Saud no longer regards his
claim on Khor al Odeid as a vital interest, while
his gratitude to His Majesty’s Government for
favours

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Content

The volume comprises correspondence and discussions regarding the economic and political situation in relation to oil in the Middle East during and immediately after the Second World War. At the centre of the discussions are talks which took place in Washington DC between US and UK government officials looking at the global importance of oil, which focused particularly on oil in the Middle East.

The talks concluded with the production of a memorandum of understanding which was published 8 August 1944 as the Agreement on Petroleum between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, otherwise known as the Anglo-American Oil Agreement (1945).

Also included in the volume is correspondence between 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. (Charles Geoffrey Prior), the Secretary to the Government of India, External Affairs Department (Olaf Kirkpatrick Caroe), 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 His Majesty’s Minister at Jeddah (Stanley Jordan) regarding two proposed pipelines. The first being the ‘trans-arabian pipeline’ which it was proposed would link the Middle East to the Mediterranean. The proposal was initially postponed owing to heavy criticism of it in the United States press but was later taken up by the Arabian American Oil Company (ARAMCO). The second proposal from the Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) and the California Arabian Standard Oil Company (CASOC, later renamed ARAMCO) was for a pipeline to take crude oil from Dhahran [Aẓ-Ẓahrān], Saudi Arabia to the BAPCO refinery at Bahrain.

Also included is correspondence between the Chief Local Representative for BAPCO (Milton H Lipp, Ward P Anderson) and the Adviser to the Government of Bahrain (Charles Dalrymple Belgrave) regarding possible sites for the pipeline and the reservation of required land. Further discussion centred on the question of the eastern frontier of Saudi Arabia, which was in dispute, and whether His Majesty’s Government should look to tackle the matter at that time with the Saudi Arab Government or wait until the progress of the oil companies required its resolution. Jabal Naksh and Khor-al-Odaid [Khawr al ‘Udayd], which were claimed by Qatar and Abu Dhabi respectively, and whose claims were supported by His Majesty’s Government but contested by Saudi Arabia were discussed as being key areas in the frontier dispute.

Another matter discussed in the volume was a visit paid by the Mission of the Petroleum Reserves Corporation to the Middle East. The Mission’s purpose was to review resources of petroleum in the Middle East and its itinerary included visits to Kuwait, Dhahran, and Bahrain. The mission was headed by Everette Lee Degoyler and also included the eminent geologists and petroleum experts Dr George Martin Lees, William Embry Wrather, and John Herhold Murrell.

Other matters touched on in the volume include a request by ARAMCO to undertake a hydrographic survey of the coast line of the Kuwait Neutral Zone; the possibility of resuming oil field production in Qatar and Kuwait provided the necessary equipment could be obtained from the USA; articles published in American journals and newspapers regarding the global oil situation and oil in the Middle East; and a visit paid by Major Frank Holmes to Kuwait in 1944.

Also included in the volume are a number of notes and memorandums relating to oil in the Middle East:

A series of file notes which were maintained as a record of the correspondence in the volume can be found at folios 272-283.

Extent and format
1 volume (285 folios)
Arrangement

The volume contains a table of contents on folio 5 comprising of subject headings and page references. The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the file.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 287; 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. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 7-270; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

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English in Latin script
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'CONFIDENTIAL 86/31 VOL. B.64 OIL IN ITS RELATION TO THE MIDDLE EAST' [‎107r] (218/578), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/700, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100086676320.0x000013> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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