"ملف ١/A/٣٧ I شيخ رأس الخيمة" [و‎‎٦] (٥٦٠/١٦)

1.0. No 0 C-66 of 1935
/
1 ;:^BT
Office of the Political Reticent
in the Persian Gulf.
H. M* S* *BOKFOHD W <
March 1933.
My dear Metcalfe,
Please refer to my telegram So. 04, datea
20th January 1333, in which I stated that our failure
to obtain air facilities at Kalda was due to the in-
-fluence of the Shaikh of Has al Khaiman.
2. T he attitude of this Shaikh has been uneatis-
-factory for some years past, ana he caused Biscoe a
good deal oi trouble. He is one of the Shaikhs who
refused to have the air port, now established at Shargah,
in his territory, and nov; refuses to call on Ships
v/hen they visit his port. He is the only Shaikh in
the Chilf whc does not perform these official courtesies.
3. Hitherto the mostimportant easiness on tae
Tiucial Coast has been to overcome the various difficult-
-ies in the v/ay of the Sharg&h Rest House being erected
as soon os possible, and while this was being done Z was
loath to have any more irons in the fire in that part ot
the world. Now, however, that the Rest House is nearly
completed, I think Pas al Knaim&h might ce tackled.
Arabs pay considerable importance to matters ol ceremony,
ana the Shaikh^ deliberate omission to carry out
official cout^esies is of course not good for our pies-
-tige. Moreover it prevents me getting into personal
touch with him; if I visit his port I ceitainly can t
make the first call.
.1 • Metcalf e, Esc . , f. * I. a •, H. 0*, , | J i
Poreign Secretary to the Government oi India, I 4- ;
New Delhi,