British To Stay In Iran, Produce Nationalized Oil

Hopes For An Oil Deal in Iran
June 21, 1951 — J.E. Jones

The Mossadegh Project | January 6, 2013

Veteran Washington correspondent J.E. Jones — Thursday, June 21, 1951.

British To Stay In Iran, Produce
Nationalized Oil, Washington Hopes

Reports filtering back to Washington on the closed session of the Iranian Senate that considered President Truman’s personal message, indicate that the word from the White House is not regarded as a solution to the now explosive British-Iranian oil squabble. The fact that some White House minion got the presidential notes to Premier Mossadegh and Britain’s Foreign Minister Morrison [Herbert Morrison] switched, may possibly have a bearing on the situation. Mr. Truman [Harry S. Truman] did not release the texts of these notes to the press, but the White House insists the two were identical.

While the Premier holds that, since Nationalization of the oil is now law, inter-governmental discussions have no place to go, international experts here (before news of the note-switching) thought they saw a peaceful business-as-usual solution. The best guess was that a new British company would be formed, with a new name, but the same old faces, to be hired by the Iranians to run their industry and sell the oil. And, bitter as the feeling is against the English, most of their oil men feel they'd rather stay in Iran than go home.

Related links:

Mohammed Will Go To The Mountain — J.E. Jones, October 18, 1951

Mossadegh Cites Quest of Liberty — AP, October 22, 1951

Case of Common Enemy — U.S. editorial, October 3, 1951

MOSSADEGH t-shirts — “If I sit silently, I have sinned”