Russia may Lose One Alaska More
According to the official announcement of the US Coast Guard (newspaper “Rybak Kamchatky”) on August 15, 1997 Russian fishing motor boat “Chernyaevo”, the property of kolhoz “50 years of Oktober” was spotted by a helicopter from the speed boat “Munro” Coast Guard 12 yards (yard = 3 feet = 0,9144 m) inside the exclusive economic zone of the USA in the Northern part of the Bering Sea. The boat was caught with sprawled fish-net on deck and a drift-net astern. “Munro” berthed and “Chernyaevo” was detented for illegal fishing and then escorted to Kodiak. The boat, equipment and 1500 pounds (American pound = 0,454 kg) of pollock, plaice and crab were arrested. The crew was permitted to return back to Russia. According to the laws of the USA shipowners or their representatives may take three decisions.
1. They may settle the matter having agreed to pay the fine and free the ship.
2. They may apply to court, where both sides will provide their evidence for court’s decision.
3. The ship may stay under arrest until both parties present their arguments to the judge for his decision.
(In December 1997 the ship was freed and kolhoz had to pay 100 thousand dollars’ fine, although the initial fine mentioned was 700 thousand $).
And here is the reaction of Russian press (B. Vinogradov “Izvestia”).
“This story look more like a detective from the history of piracy on high-seas, it became known only recently after the members of kolhoz were nearly boarded by the patrol boats of the USA, escorted to Alaska and already despaired to get from compatriots. Only on the tenth day Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs received distress signals and on August 24 it cautiously demanded explanations from Washington. (Later the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would prefer not to get involved in the story - S.V.)
There is no doubt that the USA 7th fleet would immediately approach our boarders if anything similar happened with any of the American boat, told us the offended by the sluggishness of the diplomats the representatives of the department of fishery of the Ministry of Agriculture of Russian Federation in Moscow.
The fishermen are groaning about the ‘’depravity of Americans” in the Bering Sea, who behave themselves there as owners, not considering good manners or international norms. As to the trawler “Chernyaevo”, the essence of the matter was the following. At night-time from August 15-16 in the open sea, far from the demarcation line of the economic zones (to the West, in the direction of Russia, with coordinates 61* 56’55” Northern latitude) it was caught up by Coast Guard of the USA. 20 armed soldiers boarded the ship, forced into the captain’ cabin, radio cabin and demanded to change the course 180*.
Captain Mikhailionis, an experienced sailor, refused to obey, but he could not transmit the information to his port. Yankees cut the communication. Luckily, not far away was a patrol boat of our Rybvod and they saw everything and reported to the shore.
Americans accused Mikhailionis of previously entering the limits of their exclusive economic zone and was engaged in poaching. They searched the hold but found nothing. There was nothing wrong with the ship’s log. But the guards stood their ground and said that their information was correct, it came from the satellite and it cannot lie. The captain pleaded in vain that he had not violated the demarcation line, after a day of arguing, he gave up and the boat under escort sailed 600 miles to Kodiak.
What will happen further, will kolhoz “50 years of October” win the trial against the USA or the Americans punish it, is not known. But, by the way, such an incident in the Bering Sea is not the first one, but, according to the fishermen it has little to do with them - those who work at sea. They consider it to be an episode in big policy, in connection with state interests of Russia as sea power. And there is a reason.
It is not by chance that such frightening actions take place each time when the next round of Russian-American talks on fishery comes to an end. It end as a rule, without producing any results. The argument has a long history. It goes round the so called “demarcation line” in the Bering Sea on which both sides settled according to the agreement of 1990. Fareasterners up until now experience evil feelings towards the Union Foreign Ministry and its former head Shevarnadze, who signed this “worst” from the point of view of Russian interests, document.
The last time the talks were held in Washington a few days before the capture of “Chernyaevo”. At that time, as the witnesses reported, Americans were irritated by the obstinacy of Russians, who in no way wanted to recognize the line of 1990 as final and not legible for reconsideration. The “Shevarnadze-Baker pact” on the Bering Sea is not still ratified by Russian party. It is applied on the temporary basis. The more so in February this year the State Dooma declined the law of the further continuation of it showing an unprecedented unanimity in declining its damagability.
In contrast to us the Americans had ratified the agreement as it is said ”with a rush”, that is in 1991. Then “Washington Post” wrote with enthusiasm that 70% of the Bering Sea now will be under the USA jurisdiction, and this is 13,000 square miles more than if the line would have been drawn on equal distances of the shores.
This enthusiasm is understandable. If the agreement will come into force, then it will turn out that the USA has gained and Russia has lost forever more than 40.000 square kilometers of the Bering Sea, which according to the evaluation of geologist are rich in oil and gas, in particular the basins of Northon and Navarra. Besides, Russia in fact had already lost the annual catch of 150 thousand tons of fish in the waters which went to the USA, as at some places along the line its economic zone will be less than 200 miles, and the Americans one - more than 200 miles. After the well-known sale of the Alaska and Aleutian islands, some experts say that Russia again “made a big fool of itself”.
...It is expected that Boris Yeltsin will soon propose to Dooma to ratify the agreement of 1990. But it is not likely that the deputies be more obedient than last February. Some suggest to begin talks from “the blank page” pushing off from the convention of 1867 and not let those who participated previously in the dialogue near it. The other insist on the correction of the document in our favor, still others put forward projects of “the joint zones” for prospecting and exploitation of sea resources.
Foreign Ministry experts with whom we contacted discussing this problem, are rather skeptical evaluate chances that the Americans under the conditions of economic and political weakness of Russia will assuage their position and agree to review the agreement which had been signed by the former Soviet leadership”.
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