891.5018/18
The Iranian Legation to the Department of State
In a three day conference between the British and American representatives and the Iranian Government officials in Teheran regarding the shortage of the food supply of Iran, and taking into consideration the suggestions made by the American and British, the following points have been decided upon: [Page 164]
Declaration
The Government of Great Britain and North Ireland, the Government of the United States of America and the Imperial Government of Iran declare:
Though the responsibility of feeding the population of Iran rests primarily upon the Government of Iran, due to the impact of war and the economic difficulties arising therefrom, the three above mentioned governments, in order to provide the minimum subsistence (wheat) until the 1943 harvest is at hand, have agreed:
- 1.
- The Iranian Government accepts all the recommendations of the American Adviser to the Iranian Ministry of Supply, such as: the prevention of hoarding, the enforcement of food rationing and the reorganization of transportation facilities.
- 2.
- If the Iranian Minister of Supply (in consultation
with his American Adviser) and the American and
British Legations in Teheran conclude by majority
that, after having all the practical measures
mentioned in article one carried out by the Iranian
Government, there still exists shortages of the
primary staple commodities (wheat and oats), the
following should be done:
- (a)
- In case there is a general shortage of wheat and oats below the minimum requirements of the entire country, the Governments of the United States and Great Britain agree to make arrangements to import an amount equivalent to the deficiency of these two staple commodities and to distribute them to the different centers of consumption at the proper times to prevent famine throughout Iran.
- (b)
- In case there are temporary shortages in certain localities, whether there is a general shortage or not, the Governments of the United States and Great Britain agree to supply the necessary quantity of wheat and oats to those centers at the time of need.
- 3.
- To make possible the execution of paragraphs (a) and (b) of the second article, the American and British Governments will immediately bring to Teheran 25,000 tons of wheat, which will be stored in the Government elevators and will be kept there as a reserve under the supervision of the Iranian Ministry of Supply and his American Adviser, who will be responsible for its safe keeping. This will be utilized only in case of urgent necessity and after referring to the majority mentioned in article two.
The British Minister insists that he will not agree to article three with regard to the 25,000 tons of wheat for reserve. The fact is that agitation among the people has risen to such a degree that the only way to achieve the people’s confidence and to improve conditions would be the acceptance of this article. That is the same quantity which His Majesty The Shah asked from His Majesty The King of England and the Iranian Prime Minister asked Mr. Churchill about it. That is based upon the judgment and recommendation of the [Page 165] American Adviser to the Iranian Ministry of Supply. The Iranian Government is sure that a declaration without article three will be ineffective. If such a proposition is agreed to, the emotional tension will be lessened and the Government would then be able to defend in the Madjless the bill for the issuance of the new quantity of bank notes. If the declaration, and especially the third article, is not agreed upon, the threat of famine would make internal revolution inevitable.
A period of two weeks has been set for a reply. We hope that this small help, which we deem necessary for the amelioration of the situation, will be agreed upon. While awaiting the reply, as a proof of our good faith, we would arrange by a special emergency bill to issue a small quantity of bank notes to meet the British need.