§ MR. HART-DAVIES (Hackney, N.)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the British troops are to be withdrawn from Dthala in the Aden Hinterland; whether, if so, the Amir of that place will be left unsupported against Turkish aggression; and whether the Frontier Delimitation Treaty, which assigned Dthala to the British sphere of influence, has been abrogated.
§ THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR INDIA (Mr. Morley, Montrose Burghs)My hon. friend has asked me to reply to this Question. I have already stated that the permanent location of troops in the Aden Hinderland has never been sanctioned either by the late or the present Government. The withdrawal of troops from Dthala, now that the delimitation proceedings are completed, is in accordance with the statement of policy made by Lord Lansdowne in the House of Lords on the 30th March, 1903, as to the demarcation, viz., that His Majesty's Government had never desired to interfere with the internal and domestic affairs of the tribes on the British side of the boundary, but had throughout made it plain that they would not assent to the interference of any other power with those affairs. The frontier defined by the Commission and accepted by the Turkish Government, has settled all questions of the boundary between the Turkish dominions and the territory of the Amir of Dthala, and this definition constitutes a firm guarantee against Turkish aggression. The agreement with the Turkish Government has not been in any sense or degree abrogated. I should add that a Political Officer remains for the present at Dthala, and our political supervision will be exercised in such manner as may be necessary for the discharge of our obligations.
†See Col. 1242.