IOR/R/15/6/185

This file relates to the boundaries of Muscat, in the context of anticipated negotiations between the British Government and King Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd], regarding the eastern frontiers of Saudi Arabia. Reference is made to the 'blue line', which was laid down in the Anglo-Turkish Conventions of 1913 and 1914, and the file discusses the approach that should be taken in discussions with Ibn Saud regarding possible modifications of that line.

The file contains a copy of a telegram from the Secretary of State for India to the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (forwarded by the Political Resident to the Political Agent and Consul, Muscat), dated 29 September 1934, which provides some background to the Anglo-Saudi boundary dispute and requests information regarding the existing boundaries of each Trucial Sheikhdom [Shaikhdom] and of Muscat. The Political Agent's reply to the forwarded telegram, dated 23 October 1934, provides an outline of what the Sultan of Muscat [Sa‘īd bin Taymūr Āl Bū Sa‘īd] considers to be the boundaries of his Sultanate.

Also included in the file are a copy of a letter received by the Colonial Office from the Political Resident at Aden, discussing the eastern boundary of the Aden Protectorate, and a copy of a letter from the India Office to the Foreign Office, which extensively discusses the issue of Saudi Arabia's eastern frontier and the available policy options. One question marked for consideration is whether the British should aim for a settlement which provides 'definite territorial limits' of the frontiers, or one which defines the frontiers based on tribal divisions.