The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1922-12-28
BRITISH Def IS
HANDED TO TURKS
Curzon Says MOsuI Oil Vilayet
Will Never be Given Up.
SUNDAY Note Answered

Deny That Kurds Are Same Peoples
and Point Out RebeIlions Of tho
| Past.
Lausanne, Dec. 2S.-Through For,
| eign Secretary CurZon Great Grit
| ain informed Turkey that the British
| never will abandon the MoSul oil villa
vet, us requested by the Turkish dele
CATION, and that no prolOngation Of the
| Near East conference can influence
| the British government to reced2
! from the position it has taken Oh this
matter.
The British position IS outlined III
! q letter sent by Lord CurZon to Is
met Pasha, head of the Turkish dele
CATION, covering the formal reply CT
the British delegation to the Turkish
note of Sunday last, which insisted
Mosul belonged to Turkey.
Lord Curzon said, in this letter, the
British government had eNeplled the
Turks from the Mosul area and Occu-
pied and administered it. The British
had taken a pledge to free the Arabs
from Turkish rule and establish the
government of the Irak, and England
since then had repeatedly given her
word that the Arabs would not be in
terferred with.
Lord Curzon added that Great Brit
ain had given her solemn pledge to
let no foreign power take any part of
this territory, and that she would
steadfastly adhere to her promise.
The foreign secretary said, however,
that Great Britain was prepared to
have her experts meet the Turkish eN-
perts to define the northern boundary
of the Irak.
The British delegations formal re-
ply to the Ottoman notes questions
the reliability of the statistics put
forth by the Turks to Justify their
claim to Mosul. Although the Turks
ruled this district for centuries, they
never collected exact Information, it
was pointed out, and no confidence
could be placed in their statistics. The
British note concluded:
"The British government reiterates
its refusal even to contemplate the
surrender of the Mosul vilayet, and
is unable to see any advantage which
can result from further argument"
In discussing what Lord Curzon
meant by the statement in his letter
that the British delegation was willing
to have It's experts discuss wife the
Turkish experts the precise tracing of
the northern boundary of the Mosul
vilayet, British spokesman said this
merely meant that the British delega-
ton stands ready to adjust the north
ern bOundary-tO move it few miles
south if the Turks so desire, to give
a more natural and more easily de-
feasible frontier.
The British reply cited numerous
instances of Kurdish revolts against
Turkish rule, and denied absolutely
the Turkish claim that the Kurds and
the Turks are identical and should be
treated as one people.
Lord CurZons letter also stated
that the British were ready to grant
the Kurdish districts IN the Mosu
vilayet autonomy in cases where this
was desired.
The subcommissiOn on minorities of
the Near East conference was unable
to make further progress at the meet
ing, because of the Turkish delegates
adherence to their position that the
Christian peoples in Turkey should
not be exempt from military service,
and that the Angora government could
not accept the appointment of con-
troller by the League of Nations to
supervise the treatment accorded the
minority populations.