Commonwealth Relations Office: Western and Middle East Department and successors:...

DO 174

1957-1966

This series contains records of the Western and Middle East Department and its successor of the Commonwealth Relations Office concerning Commonwealth interests in the Middle East area.

. For later records concerning Commonwealth relations with the Middle East, see FCO 27

For further records of the Western and Middle East Department relating to western organisations and issues of general concern see DO 182

For earlier records in the ME file series see

DO 35

ME file series

Public Record(s)

English

• Commonwealth Relations Office, United Nations, Western and Middle East Department, 1964-1966
• Commonwealth Relations Office, Western and Middle East Department, 1960-1964

29 file(s)

Subject to 30 year closure

Topics

International

Middle East

1957-1966

In 1954 the remit of the South Asian Department was expanded to include Commonwealth interests in the Middle East, an important issue given rising tensions at that time between Israel and its Arab neighbours, and the strategic Commonwealth interest in the area (particularly the Suez Canal). The name of the Department was changed to the South Asian and Middle East Department.

In 1957 a separate Middle East Department was created. In 1960 the department was reconstituted as the Western and Middle East Department of the Foreign Affairs Division, in 1964 it became the United Nations, Western and Middle East Department of the Western, Constitutional and General Division (from 1965 the General Division) of the Commonwealth Relations Office. On the formation of the Commonwealth Office the department was renamed the Middle East, Western and United Nations Department.