Evening star., 1925-02-28
ALBANIAN REVOLT
LAID TO OIL WAR
English Firm Seen Behind
Move to Beat Standard
Oil Co.
BY HIRAM X. MODERWELL.

By Radio TO The Star and Chicago Daily News.
ROME. February 28.-The tale of
how the Anglo Persian Oil Co. crowd
ed out the American interests from
the Albanian oil fields emerges from
the inside story of the intrigues
which eliminated in the recent revo-
luton of Ahmed Zogu.
1t is now clear that the revolution
was carefully framed with oil as a
motive. The power of the Albanian
oil concession has for four years been
the object of bitter rivalry between
the Anglo Persian and the Standard
Oil companies. The Albanians, though
they wished to please England for
political reasons, found the Anglo
Persian offer naccepta BILE and the
Standard quite to their liking in the
following respects:
A percentage of the product was
offered the Albanian government.
Operation Guaranteed.
Real operation of the wells was
guaranteed.
The decided territory was well 10
Gated from Albania's point of view
The Anglo Persian Co, however. in
sisted that it be allowed TO choose
territory anywheTe-even in widely
separated localities The Albanian
government objected that this would
constitute a virtual monopoly, since
the Anglo-Persian Co. could so dis
tribute its holdings as to include all
the oil
Premier Fan Noli insisted that the
concession be granted to the most
favora bic bidder-which seemed to be
the Standard Oil Co.
But when 1t became clear that he
would not grant the concession to
the Anglo-Persian Co under the
terms demanded, the wheels of inter-
national politics began moving mys-
teriously, under direction, apparently.
from Belgrade.
Early in December NJ. Nincich. the
Jugoslavian foreign minister, came to
Rome, where he talked to Premier
Mussolini. He also got into contact
with Austen Chamberlain. the British
foreign secretary, and then went to
Paris.
Zogu Enters with Troops
In the following week Ahmed Bev
Zogu (who had previously been in
Belgrade and was so broke he was
Obliged to borrow money from a
friend in Rome) appeared on the
Sero-AIoanian border with plenty of
money and arms and several soldiers,
including the former Wrangel of
fcers interned in Serbia.
Premier Fan Noli formally protest
ed IN Rome, London, Paris and Bel
grade, but received no responses. or
at best vague ones Then he pro-
tested to the League of Nations. and
was conf1dentially informed that the
league could not discuss the matter
without the consent of Great Britain
which he was not able to obtain in
time to prevent Ahmed Zogu's vic
tory.
simultaneously, Serbian propaganda
spread the report that Fan Noli was
receiving Soviet money, despite the
notorious fact that the Albanian gov
ernment did not have enough money
to organize a defense for war
The British representative at Tirana
then virtually broke off relations on a
minor preteXt. Fan Noli's govern
ment was without friends or money,
and its artillery was overwhelmed by
Zogu's well officered and excellently
equipped army.
Zogu's first act after assuming
power was to grant the Anglo-Per-
sian concession in its original form
The action was ratified by a rump
parliament, with 10 deputies in prison
and 80 in exile.
Copyright, 1925, by Chicago Daily News Coz