“Shall we have to submit to that shameful régime? Nobody thinks so in our country. Even those who were not bold enough to protest openly against the deed of spoliation which the Anglo-Persian agreement is, are secretly opposed to that agreement. But in order to avail ourselves of that discontent, to concentrate our forces, and chiefly to act fast and well, we need help from abroad, at least at the outset. The Bolshevists offer it to us. I do not know why we should discard the proposition at once. What makes us hesitate is their communist doctrine; yet they declare they do not want at all to ‘bolshevikise’ Persia. As soon as their promise seems to be quite genuine, it will be our national duty to accept their help. “Whether the Red Dictator’s action in Russia was good or bad is a question that concerns the Russians alone. The only question for us is how to find an ally. Now we have not to choose between many. “We should have been only too pleased to come to an understanding with Great Britain, even at the cost of some concessions, provided our independence were respected. But the British leaders have preferred trampling upon our rights. Who is to be blamed for this?” In the same manner as the Kemalist movement, a Nationalist movement was gaining ground in Persia, like the one which had already brought on the Teheran events from 1906 to 1909. Now, while the Bolshevists, in order to expand and strengthen their position, did their utmost to convince the Eastern nations that Bolshevism alone could free them, the Germans, on the other hand, seized the new opportunity that was given them to offer the Mohammedans their help, and sent them German officers from Russia. In this way, and through our fault, Bolshevism and Germanism united to foment disturbances in the East, and join with it against us. That is why Mr. Winston Churchill said, at the beginning of January: “New forces are now rising in Asia Minor, and if Bolshevism and Turkish Nationalism should unite, the outlook would be a serious one for Great Britain.” Footnotes: 15: Chapter “Le Peuple.” 16: _The Times_, February 27, 1920, p. 8, col. 4. 17: _The Times_, February 27, 1920, p. 8, col. 4. 18: _The Times_, February 27, 1920, p. 9. 19: _The Times_, February 27, 1920. 20: _India and the Empire_, reprinted from _Foreign Affairs_, July 1, 1920 (Orchard House, Great Smith Street, Westminster, London, S.W. 1), pp. 3 f. V THE OCCUPATION OF CONSTANTINOPLE The Allied intervention in Turkey continued to be the subject of frequent diplomatic conversations between the Powers.