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[ TJiis^Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government, and should be
returned to the Foreign Office if not required for official use.
SWITZSHLAiSID
POLITICAL
Decode.
Lord Curzon, (Lausanne).
January 31st, 1923.
No.
252.
D.
6.10.p,m. January 31st, 1923.
R.
7,'lO.p.m. January 31st. 1923.
(H).
oOo
MOST URGENT.
I commenced meeting this morning by speech of
some length introducing treaty, explaining i t s
general character and object and Indicating immense
concessions which have been made to the Turks in
respect of subjects dealt with in my commission.
Text has been telegraphed to B r i t i s h press.
Garronl followed by expounding quite f a i r l y
j u d i c i a l provisions of t r e a t y .
Bompard then ex­
plained f i n a n c i a l concessions and drew an impas­
sloned picture of Turkey's perfidy i n entering the
war and her treachery to France.
A l l three
speeches concluded with appeal to Ismet to accept
t r e a t y and were based on assumption that treaty I s
our l a s t word,
I then resumed the chair in order
to hear speeches of remaining delegations.
American
delegate joined in general appeal in a somewhat ln­
volved and nebulous oration ending with declaration
that refusal of Turkey to sign would be an lrrepar­
able disaster to herself,,.
Japanese, Roumanian, and Serbian delegates
then spoke shortly in similar sense.
Ismet Pasha
replied
r e p l i e d with a brief declaration taking note of
what had been said, complaining of novelty of
certain demands made in t r e a t y , and concluding
with request for. eight days delay before giving
official
reply of Turkish delegation, this period
to be consumed in p r i v a t e negotiations, at end of
which commissions were t o re-assemble to hear r e ­
sults or. as i s more probable t o resume t h e i r
labours.
Cabinet w i l l observe that this was
p r e c i s e l y the demand forshadowed in my telegram
No. 251 of yesterday.
I then adjourned conference
f o r ten minutes to admit of my delivering reply on
behalf of the A l l i e s .
[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government, and should be
.
-
fj
returned to the Foreign Office if not required for official use.]
Decypnef;
No.
II.
6,55.p,m. January 31st, 1923,
R.
7.50.p.m. January 31st, 1923.
252.
oOo
J5£ lilGSNT.
Retirement of French and I t a l i a n delegates with
fifty
minutes and was scene of v i o l e n t discord and even
recrimination.
Bompard and Garroni, i n the s p i r i t
of t h e i r private conversations of yesterday, r e ­
pudiated previous agreement with me declaring that
Ismet'8 request was e n t i r e l y reasonable and could
not be refused without discourtesy announced t h e i r
intention to stay on here and conduct proposed 'con­
versations and said that i f I refused that I should
be responsible f o r breaking up conference and wreck­
ins t r e a t y .
I declined to recede from my main
position pointing out complete t e r g i v e r s a t i o n of my
colleagues in which I declined to participate and
which I threatened to expose, i n s i s t i n g that Ismet s
1
terms meant re-opening whole case which we had un­
animously declared to be closed, and i f
suggested
conversations were to f a i l , r e v i v a l of conference
a week hence.
I refused either to agree to t h i s
or to leave any member of B r i t i s h delegation (?gr,
omit.) me or to allow any resumption of public
debates
Q
'i f 0
Lord Curzon. (Lausanne).
January 31st, 1923.
our own to an adjoining chamber lasted for
. j
debates.
Utmost that I would concede, and that with
a reluctance that I cannot exaggerate, was to post­
pone my departure u n t i l Saturday, or at the l a t e s t
Sunday night, in order that Ismet, who had already
had treaty In his possession for three days and knows
every a r t i c l e in i t by heart might have his stipulated
week f o r consideration and private discussion before
giving his f i n a l reply,,
I stated my intention to
make t h i s announcement to conference forthwith on my
own r e s p o n s i b i l i t y whether my colleagues agreed or not
and from i t I declared my i n a b i l i t y to recede.
Upon our return to conference chamber I accordingly
announced that I would out of compliment to Ismet Pasha
and Turks consent to postpone my departure u n t i l Sunday
night at l a t e s t and that I was at his disposal In the
interim.
Ismet r e p l i e d that he would-do h i s best to
accommodate me.
Part I I I
followso
[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government, and should be
returned to the Foreign Office if not required for official use.]
m
Decypher.
$ Q0
m
Lord Curzon. (Lausanne).
January 31st, 1923.
No.
D.
7.55.p.ra, January 31st, 1923.
R.
8.30.p.m, January 31st, 1923,
252.
0O0
Above denouement i s regretted by no one more
than myself but in view of president of the Council's
treacherous declaration which I had Just received of
his intention to conclude a separate treaty with
Turks and of Garroni s obvious willingness to take
!
same course with consequence that r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r
rupture would be thrown exclusively upon me and that
I should be represented as throwing away peace f o r a
matter of three days, I f e l t I had no a l t e r n a t i v e , I
have now written to Ismet asking that conversations
for which he begged may begin without delay.
Inas­
rauch as secret telegrams received this morning confirm
forecast contained in my telegram No
a
251 of yesterday
and show that Ismet not only has authority but means to
sign, I beg that instructions to General Harington con-,
tained in your telegram No. 155 just received be not
sent for the present and that French and I t a l i a n govern­
ments be not warned as proposed.
I t i s to my mind
clear that Turks do not mean f i g h t i n g and must have
a treaty, and that enemies whom I have to contend
with and defeat are not at Angora but at Paris and
Home.
I am reporting in another telegram about
president
president of the Council's attitude Out in the mean­
time I ask f o r four days additional law which w i l l
result, i t i s true, either in a treaty or in rupture
but more probably former, while i f there i s rupture
i t w i l l be in a wider f i e l d than the Near East.
Cabinet have doubtless observed r i s i n g t i d e in French
press against Poincar6's pusillanimity in which he
finds a f a i t h f u l
adherent in M. Bompara. (Ends),