Report of the Special Mission to Egypt under Lord Milner, and related papers [‎139r] (279/473)

I do not know
the centre of all vital ocrrmunications.
how far the Egyptians would accept as an integral part of
the proposal, an arrangement under which a small body of
troops should be retained in Cairo, mainly for the police
purpose of securing the personal safety of the High
Commissioner and of the Foreign Legations. This seems
to me to be a proposal which might be worth ma'cing,
especially in view of the fact that it is desirable that
foreign Powers should maize their representations to ua
and not directly to the Egyptian Government in the event of
a disturbance in Cairo affeoting the safety of their own
nationals. I would not, however, insist on this rendition
if it were lively to prove fatal to an agreement. After
a j_l ierd Cromer got cn well enough without troops. So does
our Political Officer at Hyderabad. I should have thought
also that it was quite possible to give to the Suez Canal
zone an interpretation sufficiently liberal to enable
British troops, and more particularly British aerodromes,
to be stationed in no immediate proximity to the Canal.
With complete naval control, with an established system of
aerial communications, with our military grip on the Sudan,
and on the Canal zone in peace time, and with the right to
complete an effective use of the whole country for
military purposes ic time of war, with Palestine under
British influence, end with the German Eavy at the bottom of
the seas, with Malta and Cyprus at no great distance, I
should imagine that wo might snap our fingers at any
military rislcs to our position in Egypt for the next
generation.
(6) Meanwhile Egyptian nationalism is a fcrce which
we cannot permanently affront without increasing our dif
oulties all through the East as well as in Europe. I do
not know Egypt, but I have met a considerable nurr.'re A
Young Egyptian Nationalists during the last fifteen jears.
They are capable of.stirhing up a good deal n - trouble.
.znow of an epic in Arabic on the rise of Japan written a few years