The Southland Times WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 1941. Timely Action in Iran

Southland Times, Issue 24524, 27 August 1941, Page 4

The Southland Times WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 1941. Timely Action in Iran

THE entry of British and Russian forces into Iran promises to eliminate a strategic weakness. Iran is the only State of any importance between Egypt and India which is not controlled, or largely influenced, by Britain. Thirty-four years ago its territory was divided by Britain and Russia into three zones. The northern zone became a Russian sphere of interest, and the south passed under British influence. The central area retained a nominal independence, but for many years it felt the pull of conflicting policies directed from London and Moscow. Not surprisingly, the Iranian people are inclined to be anti-British and anti-Russian —sentiments' which the Germans have tried hard, and not unsuccessfully, to foster. Teheran, the capital of Iran, has become the centre of Nazi activity in the Middle East. German agents and Arab quislings who were squeezed out of Syria, Palestine and Iraq, have gathered in the city to supervise the system of bribery and propaganda which operates in all the Arab countries. The pacification of the Middle East cannot be completed while Teheran remains a hotbed of Nazi intrigue. Efforts to end the nuisance peacefully were defeated by the refusal of the Iranian Government to expel German trouble-makers. The spread of the war in Russia means that German influence in Iran has developed from a political nuisance into a grave danger. The German armies are still a long way from the Caucasus. But they are moving in that direction, and the Iranian leaders have apparently been given optimistic assurances. According to a correspondent of The Times, the Germans are promising a rapid advance across the Dnieper, combined air and sea attacks on Batum, and an early arrival at Teheran. “Stand fast in Iran for only a few weeks longer” is the substance of their appeal. Similar promises were given, without fulfilment, to Rashid Ali, former usurper in Iraq, who is at present one of the political exiles receiving the hospitality of the Shah. Nevertheless the Iranian Government appears to have placed its faith in Germany, and there may be some sharp fighting before the Allies are able to occupy the strategic centres. The Shah’s army is not large; but it is well trained, and will have the assistance of German technicians. Popular feeling may not favour the Government now that the situation has deteriorated into open warfare. Military pressure, applied simultaneously from the north, the south and the west (for a British column is advancing from Iraq) may convince the Iranians that resistance is futile. Moreover, Britain is making a shrewd and practical appeal to the people: news of grain ships in the Persian Gulf should do more than threats or cajolery to weaken public support for the army. In British countries the campaign will be welcomed, not only because it promises to complete a strong front in the Middle East (especially in the oil region), but also because it will provide a meeting place foi - British and Russian land armies. There is a temptation to see large possibilities in this junction of Allied forces. If Soviet troops can come down through the Caucasus, British troops should be able to use the same route for a march in the opposite direction. It is possible that such action will be practicable, although the distances are great and the transport facilities are primitive. Yet the difficulties which threaten to delay, or even to prevent, the delivery of American war materials would largely disappear if a supply route could be based at the head of the Persian Gulf. The Burma Road is an obvious example of what can be done to overcome natural obstacles. And it seems unlikely that Russian troops would be entering Iran merely to make the Middle East safe for Britain.