745W.00/11–1052: Telegram
No. 1025
The Ambassador in Egypt (Caffery) to the
Department of State1
1173. Brit Emb states that as of Nov 8 prelim exchanges of views have taken place between Brit Emb Cairo Gov Gen Khartoum and FonOff London on Sudan. Genl tenor of observations is that trends set forth in Egypt Sudanese proposals are acceptable but that there are considerable practical difficulties in way of implementations.
Gov Gen in addit to his prin criticisms of proposals as set forth mytel 1139 Nov 62 states that proposals for direct elections if carried out as formulated in Egypt note wld in effect require postponement of elections for at least year. He states that districts involved are inhabited by nomads who wld have to be rounded up and placed on electoral lists—a time consuming process.
Brit Emb Cairo has recommended that rep of Sudan Govt come to Cairo to consult with Emb and prepare joint recommendations to FonOff.
Brit are therefore as yet not in posit to make definitive answer to Naguib.
- Repeated to London as telegram 396 and pouched to Khartoum as telegram 16 and to Paris for Reinhardt, to Rome, Ankara, and the Arab capitals.↩
- In telegram 1139 from Cairo, Nov. 6, not printed, Ambassador Caffery informed the Department that the Governor General of the Sudan had taken exception to two main points of the note embodying the Egyptian proposals on the Sudan: 1) the removal of the South Sudan from its present status as a responsibility of the Governor General; 2) the constitutional limitation on the Governor General’s special powers which, under the draft statute, had been reserved to the Governor General in case there was a breakdown of authority in the Sudan. (745W.00/11–652)↩