Evening star., 1925-11-13
The Syrian Mess
BY Frank II. Simonds.

mess the TACT is beginning to be un-
mistakable that France viii have to
retire from this area and abandon an
experiment which has at all times
represented traditional and senti-
mental rather than material and
practical considerations. It used to be
said somewhat humorously that the
French venture in Syria was the con-
sequence Of the song which had so
great vogue in the days of the third
empire, namely Par tant pour la
Syrie," yet 1t is perhaps equally true
that French interest in Syria goes
back to the Crusades
The French decision to insist upon
a Syrian place provoked the first and
In some ways the most fatal of the
Anglo French differences of the Paris
peace conference. During the war and
by one OF the secret treaties the Brit
lsh and French had agreed to parti-
ton of the Arab section of the Turk
ish Empire. This famous Sykes-Picot
treaty definitely laid down the divi-
sion and incidentally gave France
Mosul as well as the Lesser Armenia
north of the Gulf of Alexandr
X X
But the British under the stress of
assurances to the Arabs of their sup
port for the creation of real Arab
empire which should include Syria as
well as Mesopotamia and, at least to
the Arab mind, Palestine as we'll At
pariS the Arabs were represented by
the picturesque Emir Faisal. Their
claims, based upon great assistance
given to the British against the Turks,
We're presented and the British, while
hon md Iv-t hot
sought in all ways to persuade the
French TO resign their claims.
The controversy poisoned the whole
atmosphere of Paris, and In the end
was resolved by compromises which
were as futile as they were puerile
Instead Of obtaining all Arab lands
the Arabs only got Mesopotamia and
even here were at once involved in
quarrel with the Turks over Mosul.
The French, while obtaining Beirut,
Damascus and Aieppo, resigned Mosul
to the British, and We're presently
driven out OF Lesser Armenia by the
resurgent Turks. AS for the British,
they found themselves plunged into
the 'Mespot' mess, facing the dis
trust and hatred of the Arabs, who
felt they had been 'let down." com
PEELED to set up a Palestine which, de-
spite its great Arab ma jority. was to
bc 1t J6WlSH nome ana lnFOlVGC IN a
fatal quarrel with the Turk.
All the consequences of the miser-
able Paris affair have been unhappy
Mesopotamia, now become Irak, has
been an endless gulf swallowing up
British moneys, nor has Palestine
been better, while the Arab dissat-
isfaction spreading to India has
caused unrest. and to Egypt has led
to the formal remuneration of the
British protectorate and only recent
ly provoked the assassination Of the
sirdar.
Three years ago the success of the
Turks over the Greeks, whom the
British backed, led TO the crisis at
Chanak, when a Turco- British war
was narrowly missed, preCipitated the
fall Of LLOYD George, and in the end
eliminated in the treaty Of Lausanne,
which remains the most humiliating
circumstance in European relations
with the East. In the present Au-
tumn the dispute over Mosul between
the British and the Turks was the
outstanding circumstance of the last
Geneva assembly of the league, and
threats of war were frequently heard
at Angora.
OF course, 1t must be seen that the
situation of the British Is quite diff
ferent from that of the French. For
the latter, Syria is at most senti
mental affair, sheer imperialism of
the sort totally lacking in material
advantage, although il Is true that
France has had certain rights and
duties in the area for many decades
and has been and remains the pro-
tector of the considerable Christian
populations of the territory. But
Syria is not and could not ever be
of large practical value to France,
and there is no comparison between
the Syrian and Moroccan question.
y X
On the other hand, for Britain the
whole Arab question, the whole prob
lem which involves Egypt, Palestine
and Mesopotamia. Is that of imperial
unity and security. All these lands
are strategically the outposts Of India,
while in addition in the Irak and
Mosul are very large oil deposits,
the most valuable of all, to be sure.
lying within Persian boundaries east
of the Persian Gulf. British policy
had aimed, not without real astute-
ness, to back the Arab against the
Turk and thus to avoid the obvious
peril of inflaming NIohammedan pas
sion all over the Moslem world, and
particularly in India.
This British policy failed mainly
because French policy made 1t i'm
possible to satisfy the Arabs, although
the Palestine blunder was made off
the Britons own bat. Now, although
for the moment the British problem
is less acute, the British situation is
precarious and there Is a very large
and powerful element in England
steadily demanding that the British
get out of Mesopotamia, and out of
Palestine as well. In reality the
British issue is between the Eastern
school, Of which Curzon was the
greatest exponent, and those who see
British recovery only through the
medium Of rigid economy and the
avoidance of all adventures.
X X *
The French blunders in Syria, due
to the senile political general, Sarrail,
whom Joffre sent out of France for
INSTRUMENTATION during the war and
Clemenceau recalled in disgrace from
Saloniki because of his intrigue there,
have had costly repercussion all
over the Mohammedan world, and
France is, of course, a great Moslem
power. They have complicated the
French situation in North Africa and
they are costing lives and money now
at a time when neither can be spared.
On the other hand, French evacua-
ton will not be easy, because France
is in honor bound to protect certain
Christian populations. Nor can France
quite afford to scuttle out, for such
a retirement would be a dangerous
blow to French prestige all over the
East. French retirement, too, must
have disagreeable influence upon
the British situation, for there is no
mistaking the fact that both the Brit
ish and the French are facing the
demand Of all the Mohammedan pop