Saudi Arabia

This file concerns Saudi Arabia’s involvement in the Federation of South Arabia and Yemen during the British withdrawal from Aden. It contains correspondence on:

• Saudi requests for information concerning Aden and South Arabia
• Saudi concerns regarding the South Arabian nationalist groups, National Liberation Front (NLF) and the Front for the Liberation of Occupied South Yemen (FLOSY)
• King Faisal Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud’s disapproval of Britain’s planned withdrawal from South Arabia
• King Faisal’s comments on the threat of communism in the Arabian Peninsula, in a speech made during his visit to the UK
• Julian Amery and Foreign Secretary George Brown’s discussion concerning Saudi attitudes towards South Arabia
• Saudi equivocation of the situations in South Arabia and the Gulf, and fears regarding the effect of withdrawal from South Arabia on British commitments in the Gulf
• The Saudi-United Arab Republic (UAR) agreement for the withdrawal of UAR troops from Yemen
• Briefings on Saudi impressions of the situation in South Arabia for Minister of State Edward Shackleton in anticipation of King Faisal’s visit to the UK
• Joint UAR-Saudi efforts to broker a power sharing arrangement in South Arabia at talks in Cairo; and Kamal Adham’s proposals for intervention by the South Arabian Army
• Saudi opposition to a government dominated by the nationalists; suspicions of HMG’s preference for the NLF; and HMG’s efforts to dispel Saudi ‘misconceptions’
• Saudi support for the traditional tribal rulers of South Arabia
• HMG’s intention of providing military support to the South Arabian Army in its role as a peacekeeping force
• The escalation of violence in Baihan [Beihan] and the threat of Saudi military intervention in South Arabia
• Saudi assertions of neutrality in South Arabia
• Rumours of support for the NLF from the China, Kuwait, and Arab nationalist organisations
• The concerns of the Trucial States Rulers concerning the situation in South Arabia.
• Saudi encouragements to the Gulf Rulers concerning federation