'File 61/11 IX (D 159) Nejd-Hejaz Miscellaneous' [‎155v] (321/391)

flf-
I
A
GCPY.'
r:-. U63/41 .
- 2 -
oiTT'.' --Mij TgyajRAM.
This Document is the rroperty o
Government , and should be
■p
His Britannic Msg esty' s
kept under Lock and Key,
Departmental No ;2,
1 .276/155/25.
No;42.
lypner
telegram to Mr.
'oreign Office.
Stonehewer-Bird
6th March, 1941
(Jedda)
4,00 p,
m,
Your tele/ram No;43 (of the 22nd January; Ibn Saud's request
for increase in his subsidy).
that Ibn oaud's
attitude has been very advantageous
I agree — _ _ . _ -
to us, but he is already receiving a substantial subsidy from^us.
,/hether or not it v *ilj. be necessary t»o consiaej- increasing txiis
assistance, I tnink it would be a mistake to offer anything at
present. The position, as I understand it, is that, whereas only
a few years ago the total income of 3audi Araoia was about
•f*6Q0yC'C'vi" - -gv"-! <, tiie increased i*e v enueo s. rom Lxie Oxi x oyalties n^v 0,
during recent years, led to rising extravagance, so that the esti
mated expenditure for the current year now totals £2,000,000 gold,
whatever sums we -ave Ibn Baud would therefore soon disappear, and
we should be faced with further appeals,
difficulties about provid
If, hoi
jwever, we now
make difficult!-s about providing more money, there is at least
some hope that necessary economies may be introduced, and that any
concessions we may make later will be .the more appreciated and put
to better uses.
1
I
i-
i
2. I think therefore that you should reply to Saudi Arabian
Government that I greatly regret to learn from you that they should
be experiencing financial difficulties owing to fall in pilgrimage
and customs receipts as the result of the war. There are unfortu
nately many other Governments which in these critical days are
suffering similarly from acute financial difficulties, and are
having to impose drastic restrictions and hardships on the peoples
of their countries. I had hoped that Saudi Arabia might have been
largely spared these troubles since she at least remains at peace
and is not burdened with the necessity for incurring vast war
expenaiture. Moreover, although Saudi Arabia was, only a few
years ago, dependent to a great extent upon the pilgrimage and
customs receipts, she now receives substantial sums annually from
oil royalties^ His Lajesty's Government had taken these matters
into consideration when last year they offered Saudi Arabia on
advance of £300,000 of which half has already been paid, while
a further £200 ,000 will be payable in nprii, and the remaining
£200,000 payable in October; and they trusted that these sums,
when supplemented by the oil royalties and the other revenues still
at the Saudi Arabian Government's disposal, would prove sufficient
to enable then to carry on the administration of the country on the
reduced scale which is appropriate in these difficult times. The
£200,000 payable in April, together with the large sums recently
by the Galifornian Arabian Standard Oil Company, should in
enable Government to carry on for some months, during which
necessary steps can be taken to adjust level of expendi-
advanced
any case
time any
ture to that o.
receipts. You may add, i
' you think it
authorities,
necessary ?
having taken
that if, in the autumn, the Saudi Arabian
adequate steps to set their finances in order, wish to approach me
again, I shal: of course be ready to consider any facts which they
may desire to bring to my notice, but I should hope that position
may by then by greatly eased as the result of the measures which
they will have taken.