Foreign Relations of the United States, 1964–1968, Volume XIV, Soviet Union

204. Memorandum of Conversation¹

Washington, March 3, 1967.

SUBJECT

• Arrest of Soviet Trawler off Alaska

PARTICIPANTS

• Anatoliy F. Dobrynin, Ambassador, USSR
• W. Averell Harriman, Ambassador at Large
• Eugene V. Rostow, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs

The conversation after dinner opened with a discussion of the problems presented by the arrest of a Soviet trawler within the three-mile limit off Alaska.²

Ambassador Dobrynin recalled that on several occasions he had been asked by Ambassador Thompson to withdraw the entire Soviet fishing fleet from waters off our West Coast for considerable periods of time. Ambassador Thompson had appealed to his understanding of American politics to propose friendly and cooperative actions on the part of the Soviet Union. These withdrawals of the Soviet fleet were in no way required by international law, but were done simply to be of assistance to the United States Government. On one of these occasions, he said, he was startled after a perfectly calm meeting with the then Governor of Alaska to read a newspaper story to the effect that the Governor of Alaska had pounded the table, and in effect given the Soviet Union an ultimatum which they had then accepted. He had shrugged this off as part of the game of American politics.

But, he said, he could see that after this trawler episode, he might well be met the next time he was asked to take some such step by a telegram ordering him to tell the American Government “to go to hell”.

He thought this arrest was a first offense, and hinted it might be treated as such. I remarked that according to our information, the trawler was well within the three-mile limit, and had been fishing.

In the Ambassador’s presence, I called Attorney General Clark to obtain the latest information on the case. I explained the situation to the Attorney General, who reported on the steps taken and under way. He commented on the political implications of the episode in Alaska and on the West Coast. I called his attention not only to the bearing of the episode on our Soviet relations, but that we had been opposing high fines for American fishing boats off Peru and Ecuador.

I said we should be in touch with him in the morning. And I told the Ambassador simply that we were following the case closely, and would of course provide them with every facility they wished to dispose of the matter quickly.

1. Source: National Archives and Records Administration, RG 59, Central Files 1967–69, POL 33–4 US–USSR. Secret. Drafted by Rostow on March 4 and approved in M. The meeting was held after dinner at Rostow’s residence.
2. On March 2 a U.S. Coast Guard cutter arrested and seized a Soviet fishing vessel after it had been fishing within the 3-mile limit off the Shumagin Islands, Alaska. On being hailed the vessel made for high seas, throwing overboard its catch as it went. (Memorandum from Meeker to Rusk, March 3; ibid.)