Papers of the War Cabinet's Eastern Committee [‎76v] (152/544)

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Lord Hardinge said that the Syrian areas which were regarded
as being of special interest to France were those comprehended in
the general designation “ Area A ” in the Anglo-French (commonly
known as the Sykes-Picot) Agreement.
The Committee decided—
To ask the War Office to reply to General Allenby in the above
sense.
Italian Adviser in g. Lord Robert Cecil reminded the Committee that they had,
Palestine. a | ^} 1C same meeting, decided that the Italians were entitled to have,
on the staff of the General Officer Commanding in Palestine, a
representative of their own, with status equivalent to that of
M. Picot in relation to Palestine, but that the French could not be
allowed to have two representatives there. The Committee had
before them a group of four telegrams (E.C.-910) (Appendix I),
which had passed between the War Office and the G.O.C.-in-C.,
Egypt, which showed that things were not progressing very satis
factorily, and he suggested that the case could not be left where it
stood at present. The Italians were pressing the matter, and they
had quite as important interests in Palestine as the French had in
Syria.
General Wilson expressed the opinion that General Allenby
did not properly understand the position or what was actually
proposed. He thought that if matters were clearly explained to
him he would probably raise no further difficulty.
The Committee decided—
That the Foreign Office should prepare a telegram, clearly
explaining the situation, for the War Ollice to send to the
G.O.C.-in-C., Egypt.
Baku and the q^e Chairman said that it was difficult to make out exactly
Caucasus. what the present position at Baku and in the Caucasus was, but the
general tone of recent telegrams received from that area had been
despondent.
General Macdonogh said that just before the meeting the
following telegram had been received from Bagdad, No. X 666 ,
29th July (E.C.-967):—
“ Following extract from Clutterbuck’s report, dated Baku,
26th July, is wired by Dunsterville: —
“ ‘ There was a coup d'etat last night. Bolsheviks were
thrown out, and new Government, which begs our assistance,
set up. Bicherakov states that he will hold line till help
comes. Baku requests that staff officers, instructors, and
troops be sent there, and that first instalment should come
immediately, even if small. Transports already despatched to
Enzeli, and fleet is on our side. Dunsterville is sending to
Baku at once a party of officers and N.C.O.’s, and shortly he
himself will follow.’ ”
In reply to questions, General Macdonogh said that one
battalion might get away from Enzeli en route for Baku about the
7th, or possibly the 5th August, and that the G.O.C., Mesopotamia,
had wired the previous day that two naval nucleus crews, each
with one naval 12 -pdr., had left Bagdad on the 27th instant,
followed next day by Commodore Norris.
Mr. Montagu said that the message read out by the Director of
Military Intelligence was the more satisfactory as the most recent
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