informal negotiations began on 29 july 1911 in a british memorandum sent to the ottoman government. by this time, it seemed likely that the terminus for the german funded and engineered baghdad railway would be situated in kuwait. kuwait had been under ottoman administration since 1871 and in 1875 was included in the basra vilayet, yet ottoman rule was mainly nominal. although the sheikhdom now fell under the empire’s jurisdiction, no ottoman official was stationed in kuwait. influence over kuwait was crucial to british foreign policy in the persian gulf with regard to commerce and strategic interests concerning india.