21 OCTOBER 1922, Page 27

The fundamental Treaty between Great Britain and Iraq was signed

at Bagdad on Tuesday, October 10th, by the British High Commissioner, Sir Percy Cox, and the Prime Minister of the new State, Sir Saiyid 'Abd-ur- Rahman. The full text of this Treaty was published in the Times of October 12th, where it occupied a little over a column. The Article which will be read with the most hopeful interest in this country is the sixth, by which " His Britannic Majesty undertakes to use his good offices to secure the admission of Iraq to member- ship of the League of Nations as soon as possible." When. signing the Treaty Sir Percy Cox made a statement explanatory of this Article on behalf of the British Govern- ment. They " confidently look forward " to advocating Iraq's admission to the League " as soon as the frontiers arc settled and a stable government set up " in accordance with the Organic Law sketched in Article 3 of the Treaty. Such admission affords, in their opinion, " the sole means by which the mandatory relation can legally be termi- nated." The Treaty is to remain in force for twenty rears, though the ambiguous wording of Article 18 leaves it open for us to infer that it may be terminated if the League of Nations admits Iraq at an earlier date.