Page 393 - UAE Truncal States_Neat

Chapter Nine

Because of Ihe absence of instilutions lo which certain authorities
could be handed over, some aspects of the abrogation of the treaty
relationship with Britain could not be dealt with promptly on the
final day. The command of the Trucial Oman Scouts passed, on 2
December, from the British Political Resident in the Gulf to the
President of the UAE after the appropriate military law had been
issued in Dubai; but the actual handover of day-to-day responsibility
was only possible on 22 December.115 Similarly, the retrocession of
jurisdiction over certain foreign subjects which, in theory, had to be
completed before the 2nd of December was a long and difficult
process because new federal courts had to be set up and a number of
federal laws had lo be passed for which Britain continued to press.116
Even after the British Political Residency in Bahrain was closed on 26
March 1972, some unsettled appeal cases were still pending, and for
this purpose the British Ambassador in Abu Dhabi retained a brass
plate engraved "British Political Residency" which was put up when
he dealt with the few cases which dragged on beyond that date.
Thus, by necessity, Britain served as midwife at the birth of the
federation. Britain had all along had doubts about a federation which
included Bahrain and Qatar; it could now be satisfied that the infant
was of the very shape and size it had anticipated. Because of the
protracted handover procedures, the new legal requirements, and
the need to allocate the duties of the Trucial States Development
Office,117 Britain still helped to smooth the path for a few months
while the federation look its first steps. However it was not long
before the British Embassy took its place among the rapidly-
increasing number of embassies opened in Abu Dhabi.
Britain had not succeeded in tidying up all the loose ends quite as
neatly as had been hoped. In particular the border dispute between
Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi was unresolved. In December 1970
Saudi Arabia had repeated a territorial claim which would have cost
Abu Dhabi much of her territory and most of her onshore oil-fields.118
But Britain was by then confident that a solution could best be
worked out between the two governments, possibly with the
mediation of other Arab governments. This belief was justified and
an agreement was signed in August 1974.
Ra's al Khaimah - last but not least
This State in the extreme north probably had three major reasons
why it did not sign the July 1971 agreement between the other Trucial
368