30 JANUARY 1942, Page 2

Iran and Ethiopia

Three unobtrusive lines of small print in Tuesday's Times record the fact that on Monday the Iranian Parliament ratified the Anglo-Soviet-Iranian treaty by eighty votes to five, with eight abstentions. This is important and satisfactory news. The treaty has been under discussion since September, and the need of establishing agreement betwen three capitals, London, Moscow and Teheran, has not been the only cause of delay. The terms of the treaty are not yet known, but it is understood that th are about to be published. It may be assumed that the agree ment reached provides full safeguards for Iran's independen together with various material advantages, and on the oth side full facilities for transit of Allied stores, munitions troops and a relationship of alliance with Iran leaving no r for the tolerance of any enemy influence's. The treaty wi Haille Selassie is also on the point of completion and publicati It has been necessary to take account of a difficult situatio for while the recognition of the Emperor's full independence essential—if only in redemption of explicit promises—it is cl that he must in the present disturbed situation receive so military support, and it must be given in such a way as not t weaken his authority with his subsidiary chiefs. The appoin ment of a British Minister at Addis Ababa would be decisi evidence of a normal relationship between two independe 'States. The treaty should, and no doubt does, provide for th