Coll 28/67 ‘Persia. Annual Reports, 1932–’ [‎59v] (118/644)

18
in the councils of the Government was dead, while the tracking down of
Communist agents continued with vigour.
90. In April an agreement was reached between the Persian Fishery
Company and the Soviet Government for the purchase by the latter of the year s
output of the Caspian fisheries. This agreement took the place of a more ^
extensive agreement, which it had been hoped to reach, by which the Soviet^^
Government would have undertaken to purchase the whole available output for
ten years. The distribution of the profits of the company between the I ersian
and Soviet Governments remained unaltered.
91. In June ten bombing aeroplanes which the Persian Government had
ordered in the Soviet Union, no doubt as a set-off to their purchases of British
aeroplanes, were delivered at Pahlavi.
92. On the 3rd July Persia and the U.S.S.R. signed the Eight-Power Pact
for the Definition of the Aggressor in War.
93. On the 26th September a number of armed Soviet citizens are supposed
to have crossed the frontier at Gumbad-i-Kabus and cut off the head of a
Turcoman called Araz, as well as killing his brother. The news was^ published
in the press with expressions of assumed incredulity at the time of M. Karakhan’s
departure, but was not mentioned again.
94. The Soviet consulates at Maku and Muhammadabad (near Sarakhs),
and the Persian consulate-general at Tashkent, were closed during the year.
95. The number of refugees from the Soviet Union increased enormously,
both into Khorasan and Azerbaijan. Many thousands were reported to have
crossed between Julfa and Astara in the last part of July alone, while, between
February and October, some 45,000 persons are estimated to have entered
Khorasan, mostly Turcomans or Persians previously resident in Turkestan. As
in the past, the treatment of those crossing the Khorasan frontier left much to
be desired, while at one time great distress was caused in Tabriz by the issue
of orders for all refugees, no matter how long established, to be moved to places
further south. This order was, however, modified later, and on both frontiers
the refugees seem on the whole to have been well treated once they reached the
big cities. At the end of the year orders were said to have been issued that no
further refugees should be admitted across the Khorasan frontier. Such orders
have been issued before without much effect.
Turkey.
96. After the tension of the last few years Turco-Persian relations were
devoid of incident.
97. The delimitation on the ground of the frontier laid down in the treaty
of the 23rd January, 1932, is understood to have proceeded quietly and
satisfactorily.
98. In September the Persian Government revived the idea of a
quadruple non-aggression pact between the United Kingdom, Turkey, Persia
and Iraq, originally proposed by the Turkish Minister for Foreign Affairs (see
paragraph 35 of 1932 report). The Turkish Government replied that they could
not enter into such a pact unless they knew that the Soviet Government approved,
and they suggested that the Soviet Government should be invited to join. The
idea was accordingly discussed with M. Karakhan when he came to Tehran, and
he is reported to have declared that his Government would welcome such a pact.
A fghanistan.
99. Perso-Afghan relations made little noise during the year, although
frontier difficulties arose from time to time. 100
100. In March the Ministry for Foreign Affairs asked His Majesty’s
Legation for information regarding Major-General Maclean’s arbitral award in
the Hashtadan Valley frontier dispute in 1891 (see paragraph 36 of 1932). The
information required was given, but there do not seem to have been further
developments.