Tibetan uniformed soldiers ranked with bayoneted rifles waiting to be reviewed by Basil Gould. He discussed British military aid to Lhasa and inquired about the creation of a British office in Lhasa, but the Tibetan government rejected this.

Sir Basil John Gould, CMG, was a British political Officer in Sikkim, Bhutan and Tibet from 1935 to 1945. In August 1936, Gould led a delegation to Lhasa to negotiate with the Tibetan government on the possibility of the 9th Panchen Lama’s return to Tibet.

He eventually departed Lhasa, but left behind his commercial representative, Hugh Richardson, who had been previously stationed in Gyantse. Richardson was equipped with a radio so Richardson could maintain contact with the British.