أوراق المؤتمر بين الإدارات حول شؤون الشرق الأوسط [و‎‎١‎٣‎٨] (٢٩٠/٢٧٥)

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[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty’s GovjernmeiitJ
Printed for the Foreign Office. June 1920.
SECRET.
I.D.C.E., 41st Minutes.
FOREIGN OFFICE.
INTER-DEPARTMENTAL CONFERENCE ON MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS.
Minutes of an Inter-Departmental Meeting held at the Foreign Office on Wednesday,
June 16, 1920, at 5 p.m.
Present:
The Right Hon. the Earl Curzon of Kedleston, K.G., G.C.S.I., G.C.I.E.
(in the Chair).
The Right Hon. E. S. Montagu, M.P.,
Secretary of State for India.
Sir Arthur Hirtzel, K.C B., Assistant
Under-Secretary of State, India Office.
Mr. J. E. Shuckburgh, C.B., India Office.
Mr. C. 0. Garbett, C.I.E., India Office.
Lieutenant-Colonel G. L. Pepys, D.S.O.,
India Office.
Brevet Colonel C. A. C. Godwin, C.M.G.,
D.S.O., War Office.
Wing Commander J. A. Chamier, C.M.G.,
D.S.O., Air Ministry.
Sir John Tilley, K.C.M.G., Assistant
Under-Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs.
Maj or H. W. Young, D.S.O. (Secretary).
Mr. Montagu said that he wished to raise a preliminary point
before the Conference considered the question before them. The
Secretary of State for War had recently circulated to the Cabinet a
wffiole series of papers on the subject of the Middle East. Among
these was one by the Chief of the Imperial General Staff, dated the
6th of June, in which the following passage occurred :—
“ At the same time it is only fair to point out that the
Anglo-Persian Agreement was negotiated last year without any
previous reference to the War Office, and therefore the General
Staff were given no opportunity of expressing an opinion as to
military commitments thereby involved or as to the possibility
of meeting them.”
He had been very much surprised to see this. The Inter-Depart
mental Conference on Middle Eastern Affairs became farcical if
departments who were free to send, and did in fact send, at their
discretion Cabinet Ministers, soldiers and officials to its meetings
allowed statements of this kind to be circulated to the Cabinet. He
called attention to the 18th Minutes of the Conference at which the
draft Anglo-Persian Agreement was discussed article by article, and
at which the War Office were represented by Lieutenant-Colonel
Gribbon. He thought that a record should be made in the Minutes
of the Conference, and that the position should be explained to the
Cabinet.
The Chairman said that he entirely concurred in the view of
the Secretary of State for India. The position was even worse than
1. Anglo-Persian
Agreement.