890F.24/11–2145
The British Embassy to the Department of State
Memorandum
Ref: 129/ /45
His Majesty’s Embassy have been instructed by the Foreign Office to inform the State Department that His Majesty’s Government have [Page 969] given consideration to the questions of supply and subsidy for Saudi Arabia in 1946 and have concluded that it is desirable to inform Ibn Saud that, as far as His Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom are concerned, he should make arrangements to secure all supplies for 1946 through commercial channels.
- 2.
- In the opinion of His Majesty’s Government the necessity for a communication of this kind arises from the fact that, unlike last year, deliveries under the subsidized supply programme for 1945 appear likely to be completed by the end of the current year. Consequently there will be no back-log of supplies arriving in the early months of 1946 to keep the economy of Saudi Arabia running until fresh arrangements can be made. It will moreover be necessary for Ibn Saud to purchase and arrange for the shipment of essential supplies under the new procedure in the first weeks of 1946. It would be clearly undesirable, in the view of His Majesty’s Government, that Saudi Arabia should find itself deprived of such essential supplies at the beginning of 1946 because of delay in giving Ibn Saud notice of the need to procure. Furthermore, His Majesty’s Government are not yet in a position to determine the extent of their subsidy in 1946: they can only indicate at the moment that, if they grant one, it will in all probability be a good deal smaller than in 1945.
- 3.
- In these circumstances, His Majesty’s Government feel obliged to convey to Ibn Saud the warning contained in the first paragraph of this memorandum at a very early date; but in accordance with the arrangements for mutual consultation with the U.S. Government in matters relating to the economy of Saudi Arabia which are still in force, the Foreign Office are consulting the State Department before approaching Ibn Saud.
- 4.
- His Majesty’s Embassy are therefore instructed to enquire whether the State Department have any observations to offer on the above proposals. The Foreign Office is further of the opinion that, as far as can be foreseen, the divergence between the respective American and British scales of assistance to Saudi Arabia next year is likely to be sufficiently wide to put the preservation of any appearance of continuing a joint subsidy out of the question. While His Majesty’s Government greatly regret the discontinuance, for which they can see no remedy, of this manifestation of joint Anglo-American cooperation in Saudi Arabia, they would wish to assure the State Department of their earnest desire to continue to cooperate with the United States Government within the limits imposed by the altered circumstances.
- 5.
- Since this matter is one of some urgency, His Majesty’s Embassy hope that it may be possible for the State Department to give an early reply to this memorandum.
Washington
, November
21, 1945.