791.003/106
The British Ambassador (Howard) to
the Assistant Secretary of State (Castle)
Washington, April 16,
1928.
My Dear Mr. Assistant Secretary: I duly
communicated to my Government the substance of the aide-memoire which you were so good as to give me on April 7th
on the subject of the attitude of the United States Government with
regard to the Persian capitulations.30
I have now received instructions from His Majesty’s Principal Secretary
of State for Foreign Affairs to convey to the United States Government
an expression of thanks for their action in keeping His Majesty’s
Government in Great Britain so fully informed of their negotiations with
Persia.
I am also to communicate to you the sense of the instructions sent to His
Majesty’s Representative at Teheran, for which I would refer you to the
enclosed memorandum.
His Majesty’s Government hope that the United States Government will see
their way to instruct the United States Minister at Teheran as soon as
possible to cooperate with Sir E. Clive in this matter.
His Majesty’s Government entirely agree with the view of the United
States Government that it would be useful for the capitulatory Powers to
work on similar lines. His Majesty’s Government consider that perhaps,
if it prove impossible to induce the Persian Government to come to some
satisfactory arrangement before the beginning of May, joint action in
Teheran would have satisfactory results.
Believe me [etc.]
[Enclosure]
The British Embassy
to the Department of State
Memorandum
His Majesty’s Government in Great Britain have accepted the view of
His Majesty’s Representative in Teheran that it would serve no
[Page 708]
useful purpose to press
the Persian Government to engage foreign judicial advisers, and that
the safeguards already agreed upon in principle between Sir R. Clive
and the Persian Minister of Court will be sufficient for foreigners
resident in Persia. The Persian Government appear to have informed
Sir R. Clive that the proposed safeguards contained in the
memorandum communicated by him to the Persian Minister of Court, a
copy of which was enclosed in the letter from His Majesty’s
Ambassador to the Assistant Secretary of State dated March 6th,31 are generally
acceptable, with the exception of those dealing with the engagement
of judicial advisers, and of the last part of No. 8, which provided
that, in the event of the arrest of a foreign national, the Persian
authorities should immediately notify his Consul.
His Majesty’s Government in Great Britain consider that from every
point of view it is essential that the nature of the modus vivendi for the period between May 10th
and the entry into force of new treaties should be finally settled
at the earliest possible moment. It would in their opinion be a
mistake to allow this question to remain undecided until the entry
into force of the new regime.
His Majesty’s Minister at Teheran has therefore been instructed to
urge the Minister of Court at once to draw up, in consultation with
him, a draft of an official note stating the intention of the
Persian Government to establish modern civil, commercial and
criminal courts and their general readiness to afford to foreigners
full and adequate protection of their persons, rights and property,
and, in particular, embodying the safeguards which the Persian
Government are prepared to give to foreigners in Persia during the
period between May 10th and the coming into force of new
treaties.
Sir R. Clive has been instructed, if possible, to ascertain that the
terms of this draft note are acceptable to the Ministers of the
United States and Germany in Teheran and then to press the Persian
Government to despatch the draft note immediately to the Legations
of all the countries concerned and to arrange for its publication in
the Persian press. His Majesty’s Government would similarly arrange
for publicity to be given to the draft note in the British
press.
Washington, April 16,
1928.
