1590 FOREIGN RELATIONS, 1949, VOLUME VI

I shall, in this despatch, endeavor to outline as succinctly but as _
inclusively as possible some of the principal highlights in our
negotiations.
The Department will recall from my telegram No. 190 of March 14,
1949 * that I was somewhat disturbed: by the Saudi Arabian Govern-

ment’s decision to take the negotiations out. ‘of. the hands of Shaikh

Yusuf Yassin, Acting Foreign Minister who had, for reasons un-
known to me, been sent to Cairo, and to transfer the negotiations to _
Riyadh for their termination by Fuad Bey Hamza, a principal rival
of Shaikh Yusuf. I have no means of knowing what was behind the
Saudi Arabian Governments decision in this regard and whether it
had any significance. I do know that in 1946 Fuad Bey had criticized.
Shaikh Yusuf for what he regarded as undue concessions in the
Dhahran Airfield Agreement concluded in the exchange of notes of
1945 and 1946 and it is reasonable to suppose that Fuad Bey. was de-
termined to prove to the King that he was S capable « of driving with
us a harder bargain than his rival. |

It was immediately apparent: ‘upon my arrival in Riyadh on.
March 18, 1949 that the Saudi Arabian Government was not disposed
to accept our text of the proposed agreement in its actual form as a
basis for negotiations. Fuad Bey Hamza was, at first, most concilia-
_ tory and sought to give the impression that whatever form the agree-
ment. might take there would be no essential change .in the
administration of the airfield. However, during my conversations.
with him on the evening of March 21st, I was much disturbed by his
hardened attitude and the inferences left that there might be funda-.
mental changes introduced. It was on that date that.Colonel Richard J.
O’Keefe, Commanding Officer at Dhahran, and his legal adviser, Cap-
tain Elkins, arrived from Dhahran at my request to assist me in the.
negotiations.

The Department will no doubt appreciate that o our policy with re,
gard to Palestine was a heavy handicap in obtaining the continuance
of the privileges which we had previously enj joyed at Dhahran. More-.

over, the difficulties which we had experienced in formulating replies
to the several requests and i inquiries made by His Majesty of us re- ~

garding our position and attitude toward Saudi Arabia were a further

considerable handicap. Fuad Bey pertinently expressed what. was in’

the mind of His Majesty when he said Saudi Arabia was in the: position a
of a woman waiting vainly for the United States to consummate its ¢
marriage with Saudi Arabia. — : a
In.view of our previous Palestine policy, the. King found it partien-.
larly. difficult to renew to us openly privileges at ‘Dhahran which’
might. have been interpreted by other Arab. states as an indifference .
on the part of His Majesty to the Arab cause. The position ‘of the-

* Not printed.