Page 207 - Records of Bahrain (7) (ii)_Neat

Bahrain-Qatar seabed, 1951-1960 597

Qir- nu» FORKION OFFICE, G.W.l.
(T3A .271/3)
let February, 1952.
CONFIDENTIAL
r'
I
Ao you will have oeon from our tolegram 2-Jo. b
of tho 31 >♦* , we have approved of the action suggested
In paragraphs 2 and 4 of your letter No. 15311/1/52 of tho 12th
January. Our original objection to thio action woo loaoonod
by the omloolon of tho words suggested by you In your paragraph
2, oo that it could not bo implied that a continuance of the
survey operations woo admitted by us to be without prejudice
to tho Ruler of Bahrain?o claims to the soa-bed area east of
tho 1947 lino.
2. It would be satisfactory if this whole question were now
allowed to die, and were unlikely to bo raioed on some future
occasion. It is by no moans cortain, however, that oil will
not bo found 1n thin area. If ever it is, then it will, of
course, be necessary for uo to onforco the line, since any
deviation from thin policy would cauoo a loss of confidence in
Hio Majesty's Government on the part of both tho Ruler of Qatar
and all the oil companies in this area, If and when the
queotlon of delimiting the oea-bed areas between nil the Persian
Gulf States, in accordance with the 1949 3ea-bod Proclamations
arises, then too it will be necessary to enforce this line.
Whilst, therefore, agreeing with your proposal ao a temporary
expedient in the present circumstances and as a means of
avoiding unpleasant;relations between tho Ruler of Bahrain
and the International Marine Oil Company, it must still remain
our policy to adhere to the 1947 line, and to maintain that
this is so whenever it may be questioned.
3. We realise that several fuctoro, such as the increase
in tho wealth and oil production of Qatar at a time whon thooe
of Bahrain are limited, and also the disputes which tho Ruler
of Bahrain has with tho Saudis on hio other coast, must make
the Ruler particularly concerned about his prestige at a timo
like this. We are, therefore, anxious to avoid provoking him
unnecessarily or giving the impression elsewhere that his own
traditional position of precedence in the Gulf is lessened.
We hope, therefore, that the procedure suggested by you will
help to prevent the present dispute from'being an occasion
whereby tho Ruler would feel that his prestige had been so
lessened. At the same time, however, wo must be prepared to
maintain the ruling we have laid down whenevor it is neoessary
to do 30.
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(R.F.G. Sarell.)
Lieutenant Colonel,
Sir Rupert Hay, K.C.M.G. , K.C.I.E. ,
Bahrain.