'SUMMARY OF THE PRINCIPAL EVENTS AND MEASURES OF THE VICEROYALTY OF HIS EXCELLENCY LORD CURZON OF KEDLESTON, VICEROY AND GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF INDIA IN THE FOREIGN DEPARTMENT. I. JANUARY 1899-APRIL 1904. II. DECEMBER 1904-NOVEMBER 1905. VOLUME IV. PERSIA AND THE PERSIAN GULF.' [‎54v] (113/386)

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and integrity of Persia, and to discuss, in the most friendly spirit, a possibility
of arrangements for a simultaneous advance by Great Britain and Russia, each
accepting its security of Persian revenues falling within the indicated sphere.
The (>nly°result was to prove the practical futility of Russian assurances.
32. Nor >vas Russian interference limited to efforts to reduce Persia to
•financial tutelage. Her activity was widespread; Her policy unswerving from
her unmistakeable goal and Lord Curzon decided in November 1901 to review
the general question of Persian Affairs in a despatch.
33. The place which this Despatch and Minute occupy in the subsequent
policy and pronouncements made by our Minister and Ambassador at lehranand
St. Petersburgh respectively under instructions from Itis Majesty s Governmen
both to the Russian and Persian Governments and m the public declarations of
responsible Ministers is so marked that some detailed events of later Chapters
would be imperfectly understood without a study of the complete text, llic
despatch, dated the 9th November 1001, ran as follows
“ In our despatches of 21st September 1899 and 6th September 1900, we have already
fully acquainted \ our Lordship and His Majesty’s Government with the views which are enter
tained by ns with regard to British interests and British policy in Persia. Subsequent even s
have more than confirmed the forecasts that were contained in our earlier letter, and have lent
additional weight to our appeal for a clear and emphatic enunciation of British policy m
regard to that country. The negotiations for a further Russian loan to the 1 ersian Govern
ment, and f<>r a new Commercial Treaty, designed in the interests of Russian and to the detri
ment of British trade; the apparently imminent construction of a Russian r adway from
Ashkabad to Meshed, the capital of Khorasanjthe activity of Russian representative* an
agents in Seistan and the regions c ntiguous to the Baluch border; tho obstacles VJ ^
wav of the Nushki-Seistan trade route by Russian influence, both m re*P f ct of customs
arrangements and of quarantine ; the appearance of Russian Consular Agent* and or a mercan
tile service subsidised by the Russian Government in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. -all of these cncum-
stanci s illustrate the rapidity with which the weakness of Persia is being turned to account by
her powerful neighbour ; while they also testify to the _ unswerving purpose wi h the
roliev of the Russian Government is directed to an obvious and unnnstakeable goal. _ W c Ua\e
so recent Iv submitted to Your Lordship our views of the imperative necessity of making up our
minds as to the point to whhh these ambitions may safely be pursued without coming into
• direct collision with British and Indian interests, and of shaping our future action, both
diplamatic and commercial, accordingly, that we do not propose upon the present occasion
to trouble Your Lordship with any repetition of opinions with which yon are already tamiliar.
It is sufficient to say that the events of the past two years have hut strengthened the
unanimity and force of the conviction to which we have previously given expression ; aurt
that, in our judgment, Cue question of Persia and the P^rdan Gulf is on the verge©
becoming the most critical issue . f Central Asian politics. That these views are not substan
tially dissented from by His Majesty's Government is apyarent from the telegraphic mtorm-
.ation which has reached rs from Your Lordship since the above piragrapb was written--
to the effect that the British representative at St. Petersburg has been authonsed to
speak frankly to the Russian Foreign Minister concerning the respective parts that should
he played by Great Britain and Russia in the future maintenance and development of the
Persian Kingdom.
"2. On the present occasion we address Your Lordship with another though correlative
object. The determination of the attitude which is to be adopted by the British Government
- in view of the conditions which we have described, while to a large extent dependent upon
declarations or pledges already made, and upon the traditional history cf British policy m
those regions, must also be greatly affected by a consideration of the practical effect likely
to be produced upon British interests in the future by a continuance of, or an abrupt departure
from, those traditions We take it to have been a common-place of Bril ish statesmanship
throughout the past century that in Southern Persia and the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. British influence
should remain supreme; and that, while at no time could the commercial competition of
other Powers be reasonably resented, or legitimately opposed, yet the creation of nva
political interests in that quarter could not he permitted, without seriously compromising
the interests of India and therefore of Great Britain. We know of no Indian administration
and of no responsible British statesmen, who have not subscribed to these views. More
recently we have observed indications of a willingness in some quarters to recede from this
attitude, and to argue that the political predominance which has been acquired by Great
Britain io the regions in question, at so great an expenditure of energy and treasure,
may with impunity be challenged by others, and can safely he shared with them, and that no
menace need ensue to British interests from the construction, for instance, of a Russian
railway to the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. or the acquisition by that Power of a port and naval station
upon its coastline. Upon this subject we conceive that no one has so strong a right to
speak as the Government of India seeing that it is Indian interests that are directly
involved : and we are confident that io any decision that may be taken by His Majesty s Gov
ernment due weight will he attached to this plea. -