Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907
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The Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907 or the Treaty of Saint Petersburg of 1907 was an accord signed between the British Empire and the Russian Empire. The Treaty had three sections, dealing with Persia, Afghanistan and Tibet. Persia was divided into three zones: a British zone in the south, a Russian zone in the north, and a narrow neutral zone serving as buffer in between. (The Convention was very careful not to call any of these zones a sphere of influence, for fear it would look like the Great Powers were partitioning Persia.) In Afghanistan, Russia recognized Afghanistan's status as a semi-protectorate of Great Britain. And in Tibet, both Powers agreed to recognize the suzerain rights of China, and agreed to leave Tibet alone.
The Accord concerning Persia, which had 5 articles, was signed without the participation or knowledge of the Persian government, and was thus eventually met with a bitter response from Iran's parliament. Iran was officially informed of the Accord later, on September 16, 1907. Similarly, the Emir of Afghanistan refused to sign the agreement concerning Afghanistan. And the Tibetans not only refused to acknowledge the agreement, they also continued to refuse to acknowledge China's suzerain rights.
The Accord was signed in St. Petersburg on 31 August 1907.
- Adelson, R. London and the Invention of the Middle East: Money, Power and War, 1902-1922. New Haven & London: Yale University Press. 1995. p.59-62.
- Siegel, Jennifer. Endgame: Britain, Russia and the Final Struggle for Central Asia. London: I.B. Tauris, 2002.