مجموعة ٥٩/٣٠ "الخليج الفارسي. تأسيس البحرية الفارسية، إلخ" [و‎‎٢‎٩‎٨] (٦٢٤/٥٩٦)

to provlcto ship# in order to try and forestall the Italians*
^ From the point of view of our relations with Iraq, it would
/ *
^V* b# m0,t una * Bir * bl * that Hls iRajesty 1 a Qovernwient ^should
supply Persia ^ith warships, shlch would only have the effect
of creating difficulties for Iraq* Iraq had already had
armed launches
dlffloultlee ^fith Por 3 1 an/jamhAjac in her territorial waters
and the ;hatt-el-Arab*
Secondly, the Colonial Office disagreed *lth the
Admiralty and the India office on the effect which British
assistance to the i ersians ?ouli have on the Arab sheikhs*
The new ships
ffe^y/weuld constantly be interfering with, and searching Arab
dhows. The Colonial Office sould even prefer that Persian
ships in the 3ulf should be coaatjanded by Italian officers
rather than by British officers, so that it *ould be the
Italian officers 4io would incur the odiura of the Arab Sheikhs
and of Iraq*
*yr t Ulth*alte explained that he had not intended to
say that the India Office would felcome a Persian navy. They
considered that, if It *as Inevitable that the Persians should
set these ships, the danger of complications with the Aiwab
Pheikhs >K>uld be loss if they «ere co^eanied by British
officers than if they were commanded by Italians.
dr.».. hall said tiiat a third objection which the
Colonial Office felt was a financial objection* Iraq had
been made to pay, and without reduction, for everythinr she
had obtained from us. Recently, however, it had been
decided to provide Xbn Baud with aeroplane* at a specially
low charge - aeroplanes which might even eventually be used
against Iraq. How there was tills proposal for providing
Persia with a navy, and even although it might not in fact
be a free gift, the Persian a aould certainly proclaim that
they had got it in exchange for their claim to Bahrein, Shich
was/