Soviet Union

This file relates to the reaction of the Soviet Union to the announcement of British withdrawal from the Gulf. It contains:

• Article in Pravda on the US and the UK’s interest in a system of mutual defence after withdrawal; and comment by the HM Embassy in Moscow that the Soviet response is split between welcoming a new Arab state, and wariness over renewed imperialism from Saudi Arabia
• Extracts from Summary of World Broadcasts on the Soviet broadcasts in Farsi and Arabic on the UK’s withdrawal
• Correspondence concerning attempted Russian commercial penetration in the Trucial States
• Article in the Washington Post on Soviet naval forces in the Gulf
• Article in the Daily Star of Lebanon on communism in the Gulf
• Brief on the Middle East for the Secretary of State’s visit to Rumania [Romania] on 8-11 September 1968