'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.' [‎67r] (138/386)

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‘‘ports of the south,” all of which were situated on the Gulf of Pars or in
adjacent waters. Further, Sir M. Durand’s note had no reference to an
exclusive Kussian loan such as that made in 1900, but referred to the earlier
negotiations for a mixed English-French loan and merely repeated a previous
declaration by Lord Salisbury to the effect that whilst there would be no
objection to a partial foreign loan on the security of “ ports of the north, ” we
could not agree to it in the ports of Ears.
37. The situation despite constant representations showed no signs of im^
prrwement. By the 25th A pi il matters retrograded for the Mushir e i-Dowleh
had persuaded tiie Prime Minister to substitue a vague and evasive reply for a note
drafted by M. Naus and on the 27tii April the British Minister addiessed a strong
remonstrance to the Ain-ed-Dowdeh in which he pointed out the exemplary
patience which the British Government had displayed, and demanded a clear and
unequivocal answer. Still the Mushir-ed- Dow A term adopted by British officials to refer to local sailing vessels in the western Indian Ocean. leh continued to urge the objec
tions of his Government to making a definite pronouncement on the point and
finally on the 5th May 1904 suggested a reference to the Hague Tribunal. The
Minister replied that no arbitrator could decide Persian intention in using an
ambiguous expression, that he would transmit no fresh evasive replies and that
if any more were contemplated they must be sent through the Persian Minister
in London.
38. This seems to have at last produced some effect but the correspondence
disclosed the probability of the increasingly necessitous condition of the Govern
ment having to a great extent contributed to the desired end. About a fortnight
later M. Nans was able to inform Sir A. Hardinge that the Bussian Government
was again being sounded as to the view r it took of the phrase “ Pars and the
Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ,” and that the Persian Government had made up their minds to
address to the British Minister a note on the lines of his (M. Naus) original
draft, a copy of which was enclosed in Sir A. Hardinge’s confidential
despatch No. 61 of the 30th March. That despatch w^as not received by the
Government of India till the /th May. It was appaient fiom the diaft
that it was not contemplated that any explanation as to the meaning of the
doubtful expression should he made to Bussia and that if ever the question should
assume a concrete form it would be a matter for settlement between London and
St. Petersburg. In view of article 14, how ever, of the Bussian loan contract,
the Government of India were doubtful whether any value could be attached
to the proposed draft and on the 8th May telegraphed to the Secretary of State
pointing out that it w T as stipulated in Article 14 of the Russian Loan Contract
of 1902 that all doubts and differences arising out of the execution of the con
tract should he arranged by Russia and Persia themselves and enquired whether
the former could not insist on deciding with the latter the interpretation to he
attached to the expression “Pars and the ports of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. .”. If so,
the Government of India asked whether it would not be necessary to intimate
to the Russian Government any decision taken by the British Government in
the matter of the meaning. The Secretary of State replied on the 22nd June
to the effect that unless satisfactory assurances were in the near future received
from the Persian Government regarding the expression “ Pars and the Persian
Gulf ” Sir A. Hardinge would be authorised to settle the question by notifying
our view to them and intimating that if Persia attempted to ignore British
rights necessary steps to ensure respect for them w T ould he taken. In the
opinion of His Ma|esty’s Government the meaning they attached to the above
expression w T as in any case one for mutual agreement in the first place between
His Majesty’s Government and that of Persia and there seemed no necessity
that intimation of the meaning attached to the expression should be given to
the Russian Government.
39 Bv this time the position was that, sinee the loan negotiations had
been broken off at the end of 19C3, the Minister had constantly been pressing
for an interpretation of Pars and the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ; M. Naus had been converted
to our view Lord Lnnsdowne had mentioned it to the Persian Minister in
London: acceptance of the Keglement was suspended pending acceptance of
our views on this question of Pars and the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. . The Persian Govern-
ment had apparently been driven into a corner with the result that Sir A.