Abstract:
Abstract The intensification of Russia's economic presence in the east and southeast of Iran is an issue that knowing its reasons can determine the strategies of that government in the neighboring countries.The purpose of this article is to focus on Russia's economic activity in Sistan and the authors try to answer this question with a descriptive-analytical approach and using library and documentary methods: "What factors caused the increase of Russia's economic presence in the western borders of India and Sistan". It seems that in addition to the strategic importance of Sistan in the political and military competition between the colonial powers at the end of the Qajar period, Sistan had a potential economic capability that attracted the attention of extra-regional powers. The results of this research show: Sistan always had an economic attraction due to agricultural products and trade routes; but the special global conditions of the "armed peace period" turned this region into a field of competition between Russia and England. Introduction The plateau of Iran has always played a great role in the commercial and political relations between Asia and Europe, and Sistan was one of the regions that were on the route of the Indian trade routes. After the Turkmanchai agreement, Russia's influence in Iran had increased; But England was able to take over the markets of the east and south of Iran by using the privilege of being a neighbor of India and the waterway of the Persian Gulf. The interference of Russia and England turned Sistan into the center of their competition to preserve or take over India. Russia increased its economic efforts in the western borders of India and by strengthening trade in Sistan, it competed with the exclusive presence of British and Indian merchants. The purpose of this article is to focus on Russia's economic action in Sistan, which can show the behavior pattern of that country in a critical stage of Iran's history. The problem of this research is how Russia copes with the presence of England in the east and southeast of Iran and to answer the question of what factors increased the economic presence of Russia in the western borders of India and Sistan? It explains Russia's strategies to develop its presence in neighboring countries. 1.1. Research Methodology The approach of this research is "analytical" which first collects historical information in a "library way" and after historical description, it is analyzed and evaluated. The authors have tried to use the few new researches that have been done on the subject, and also use the "documentary method" and check the validity of the data in original sources, documents and researches as much as possible. It is not easy to find researches that exclusively deal with the economic influence of colonialists in "Sistan". Charles Esawi's work (1369) entitled "Economic History of Iran" deals with the entire economy of Iran during the Qajar era, and Piocarlo Terenzio (1363), Firouz Kazemzadeh (1371) and Hossein Nazim (1380) also discussed the Russian and British competition in Iran in separate works. And they have considered Afghanistan from a political perspective. The colonial influence of Russia was also investigated by Yua, Elena Andrey (1388) and Rose Louise Graves (1387); (2010), in two articles, he has paid attention to British policies to preserve India; But most of these works have paid attention to the political aspects of the Russian-British rivalry, and the concentration of researchers has been less focused on the geographical area of Sistan. Discussion During the period of Nasir al-Din Shah, Afghanistan's position as India's defense barrier decreased and the British paid more attention to Sistan (Greaves, 2017, 402-401). Russia also increased its influence by taking the privilege of building telegraph lines and enjoying the exemption of customs duties, imports to Iran (Mir Ahmadi, 1364: 653) and by establishing commercial agencies and laying communication routes, it slowly settled in the borders of India. The news of the Iranian government's agreement to build a Russian telegraph line in the southeastern regions of the country caused confusion and intense dissatisfaction in British political circles (Trenzio, 2013, 174). Butzov, the autonomous minister of Russia in 1314 A.H. On the pretext of preventing the spread of the plague from Mumbai to his country, he requested the Iranian government to establish quarantine stations along the border of Iran with Afghanistan and the highway from Sistan to Khorasan; But it soon became clear that the real goal of the Russians is to create an obstacle in the way of India's trade with Sistan and Khorasan (Kazemzad, 1371: 390-389). In 1316 A.H. Although Russia did not have a citizen or an important commercial organization in Sistan, it established a consulate in this region. In the same year, a group of Russian surveyors came to Mirjave border. In Muharram 1317 A.H. Also, the Iranian consul in Bombay wrote to the Iranian foreign minister that the British were worried about the advance of the Russians to the borders of Afghanistan (Astadukh, 1317 A.H., p. 7, p. 20). He described the action of the Indian government in giving British citizenship to Iranian businessmen as dangerous (Estadukh, 1316, p. 35, p. 5) and warned that British soldiers would travel in the border areas of Iran with a change of clothes (Estadukh, 1317, p. 15). , p. 5). In 1319 A.H. Russia sent a mission from Merv to Sistan to identify a short route from Sistan to the south of the Caspian and investigate the suitable market for Russian goods in Sistan (Andrei Yua, 2008, 76-75). In the beginning of 1318 A.H. Also, the sale of kerosene, which brought many benefits to Russian businessmen, increased in Sistan and nearby areas. Other Russian goods, which were imported via the Caspian Sea and the Trans-Caucasus railway, simply pushed back the British goods. After all, it was easier for the Russians to meet the needs of the Iranian markets because they were more familiar with the needs of the Muslim customers of Central Asia, and the efforts of the British to shorten the time of sending goods by railway could not reduce the speed of the increase of Russian goods in Iran (Esavi, 1369, 511 -510; 186). Russian merchants established a trading house in Nusratabad and in 1319 A.H. Mashhad-Nasirabad telegraph line was also used. Using the customs treaty, that country had the possibility of free import of commercial goods (Litan, 1367: 123; 119) and using this privilege, it expanded trade in Sistan. Conclusion In response to this question, what factors caused the increase of Russia's economic presence in the western borders of India and Sistan? It should be written: Russia pursued two basic goals in Iran. Access to the Indian Ocean and capture of India and the use of economic resources. The first tsarist government occupied a part of Iran's lands. Despite the imposition of the Turkmanchai contract, this action did not go anywhere due to the reaction of the British and their progress was stopped. Therefore, that country tried to turn Sistan into a base to put pressure on England and capture India by penetrating to the east of the Caspian Sea and gradually advancing towards the eastern and southeastern borders of Iran. The favorable commercial position of Sistan in the neighborhood of India was another factor in the increase of Russian efforts in this region, and the prosperity of agriculture in Sistan, which provided access to food resources for possible expeditions to India, was very attractive. After that, the southeastern region of Iran gained special importance and became the scene of political and diplomatic confrontations between Russia and England over influence and domination over the eastern and southeastern regions of Iran and Afghanistan. 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