Papers of the Interdepartmental Conference on Middle Eastern Affairs [‎68r] (135/290)

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Clause 7.
Clause 8.
Subsidiary Draft
Agreement.
Clause A
Clause B.
The Conference decided that the wording of this clause was
sufficiently non-committal not to require amendment at
the present stage.
7. Mr. Oliphant said that the Board of Trade had been con
sulted on this point, and no reply had yet been received.
The Conference decided to await the Board of Trades reply.
8. The Chairman again alluded to the necessity of avoiding
any step which would strengthen Mushaver’s plea to be repre
sented at the Peace Conference.
Mr. Montagu said he understood that the Peace Conference
had now finished with the League of Nations, which had itself
become the authority to whom the question of the inclusion of any
other member must be referred.
The Conference decided that the Foreign Office should refer
this point to Paris.
(Sir Percy Cox’s telegram No. 259, the 10th April, 1919.)
9. The Chairman said that he adhered to the opinion
expressed in Foreign Office telegram No. 225, of the 17th April,
namely, that if anything were to be done on these points, it should
be embodied in a subsequent letter to the Persian Minister. Sir
Percy Cox had agreed to this in his telegram No. 293 of the 19th
April, but in his telegram No. 308 of the 25th April he had
expressed some doubt as to whether His Majesty’s Government
still wished the subjects included in the Subsidiary Draft Agree
ment to be kept secret and treated by exchange of letters, or
whether it was considered that they could be altered in form so as
to come into the principal document.
The Conference decided that it would be preferable to get rid
of these assurances altogether, but that it was, in any
case, undesirable tc include them in the princq: A
document.
10. Mr. Montagu said that if this clause were passed as
drafted it would open the door of the Peace Conference to the
Persian delegation.
The Chairman concurred, and said that it was only at Paris
we could possibly support the claims of Persia for compensation.
The Conference decided that the Foreign Office should inform
Sir Percy Cox that it was considered inadvisable to give.
Persia any grounds for going to the Peace Conference
just at the time when efiorts were being made to get rid
of the Persian delegation altogether.
11. The Chairman said that two points were raised by this
clause. The first was the possibility, which had already been dis
cussed, of strengthening the Persian claims to representation at
Paris; the second was that it would; be very difficult to find any