File 57/1928 Pt 4 'Iraq-Nejd Relations: Mission of Sir G. Clayton to Ibn Saud.' [‎90r] (177/1364)

■
esty that I il
ly ¥
aye givfi-
views anti 5
partied :
rditasJ®
countff^
antraiy,^
in its ^
'0
the 'M'
47
watering enjoyed by Nejd tribes, or to hamper their lawful move
ments and migration across the desert areas of south-western ‘Iraq ;
and he gave Your Majesty explicit verbal assurances to that effect.
Both His Britannic Majesty’s Government and the ‘Iraq Government
desire formally to repeat those assurances which correctly represent
their considered policy.
5. In earnest of their desire to arrive at a fair and peaceful settle
ment of the question at issue, and to remove all obstacles in the way
of consolidating the relations of amity and concord between the two
Arab States, His Britannic Majesty’s Government and the ‘Iraq
Government are prepared, should Your Majesty so desire, to submit
the points in dispute to an arbitrator to be selected in consultation
with your Majesty and in agreement between the Governments
concerned. I am authorised formally to offer to Your Majesty this
proposal of arbitration and to invite Your Majesty to inform me
whether you are prepared to assent in principle to a settlement on
that basis, so that the mode and conditions of the proposed
arbitration may be discussed without delay.
6. His Britannic Majesty’s Government desire to repeat the
assurance given to Your Majesty by Sir Gilbert Clayton, to the effect
that they regard the provisions of Article 6 of the Bahra Agreement
as applying to British as well as to ‘Iraqi forces, and that they fully
intend to observe the stipulations of that Article, provided, of course,
that Your Majesty’s subjects abstain from hostile acts of aggression
of a nature and on a scale likely to endanger the security of ‘Iraq.
7. His Britannic Majesty’s Government hope that their proposal
of a settlement by arbitration will commend itself to Your Majesty,
not only for the sake of settling in a manner which is fair and honour
able to all parties the points in dispute, but also because such a
settlement would pave the way to the conclusion of formal agree
ments on the various questions affecting Nejd, ‘Iraq and Trans
jordan which were discussed and agreed upon in principle by Your
Majesty and Sir Gilbert Clayton. Those questions relate to agree
ments on bon voisinage An agreement or treaty based on principles of 'good neighbourliness', often signed between countries which share borders. , extradition, the surrender of fugitives from
justice, the appointment of diplomatic representatives and cognate
questions.
8. If, on the other hand, Your Majesty should not agree to seek
a settlement on this basis and would prefer, rather than have recourse
to arbitration, to leave the question unsettled, with the resultant
risk of unrest on the frontier, His Britannic Majesty’s Government
and the ‘Iraq Government could only regret such a decision on the
part of Your Majesty.
9. In that case, the Governments concerned must agree for the
time being to postpone any settlement as to the true meaning of
Article 3 of the First Protocol of Uqair. Nevertheless, the various
0