HC Deb 26 February 1968 vol 759 cc929-32
18. Mr. Marten

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will make a further statement on ships detained in the Suez Canal.

38. Mr. Boyd-Carpenter

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs when he now expects the British ships trapped in the Bitter Lakes to be freed.

Mr. George Brown

I am continuing to do all I can to get the arrangements for the release of the ships restarted.

Mr. Marten

Is the loan which is being negotiated with Egypt at the moment contingent on the right of the nations which own ships trapped in the Suez Canal to get them out? What are the terms of that loan?

Mr. Brown

There is no such thing as a loan in that sense. Question No. 35 specifically deals with that subject.

Mr. Boyd-Carpenter

What has happened to the optimism which the right hon. Gentleman showed a few weeks ago on this topic? As he now appears to rely on the international maritime community for protection of British shipping, will he organise it to put sufficient pressure on Egypt to secure the release of ships unlawfully imprisoned in the Canal for nine months?

Mr. Brown

If the right hon. Gentleman thinks more closely he will realise that there is more than one source of responsibility for the fact that the previous arrangement we got started came to a stop. I am in touch with both Governments concerned and with the international agency and the other maritime nations concerned and of course with Mr. Jarring's mission. We are doing the utmost we can to get these arrangements restarted. Rather than trying to apportion blame or showing prejudice, I think that is the right thing to do.

Mr. Colin Jackson

Can my right hon. Friend give an assurance that the United Nations mission is itself in touch with the Israelis and the U.A.R., bearing in mind that the original incident may have been caused by a misunderstanding? [HON. MEMBERS: "Oh."]

Mr. Brown

Yes. My hon. Friend has a great deal of knowledge about this. He may be a great deal nearer right than those who take the opportunity to jeer. I can give an assurance that the Jarring mission is in touch with both sides, as we are, but I think that at this stage in our work the less I am asked to comment in public the better.

Sir G. Nabarro

What help is Soviet Russia giving in this matter? Is the naval presence of Russian ships in the Mediterranean helping the right hon. Gentleman to free British ships locked up in the Suez Canal?

Mr. Brown

I do not at first sight see the connection between that question and the Question on the Order Paper, but if the hon. Gentleman cares to put down a Question of course I will consider it.

23. Mr. Henig

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether it is the policy of Her Majesty's Government only to seek the reopening of the Suez Canal on conditions which enable the ships of all nations to make use of it.

Mr. George Brown

Yes, Sir. In Her Majesty's Government's view any settlement of the problems of the Middle East must include respect for the right of free and innocent passage through international waterways for the ships of all nations.

Mr. Henig

While I welcome that Answer, may I ask my right hon. Friend to tell the House whether he has made it clear to the United Arab Republic that any friendly pressure put on Israel to reach a quick agreement whereby the Suez Canal is promptly reopened must necessarily include the concession by the United Arab Republic that it shall then be open to the shipping of Israel as well as that of other nations?

Mr. Brown

Our view has repeatedly been made clear, not least importantly in the resolutions which we carried unanimously through the United Nations. As to what concessions are made by whom at any stage in the solution of the various problems that go together to make up the Middle Eastern problem, I think it is probably better to leave that in the present state of affairs to the Jarring mission and the negotiations that it is having now.

Dame Irene Ward

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that so far as the British maritime position is concerned I do not think he is getting on very well for Great Britain? Will he get on a little bit better for Great Britain please?

Mr. Brown

I never had much hope that the hon. Lady would ever feel other- wise. But she might like to know that in regard to the Straits of Tiran we are getting along exceedingly well now. So far as the Suez Canal is concerned, as I have already said negotiations are proceeding and everything that can be done is being done. She may also be relieved to know that as a result of the closing of the Canal large tankers are being built—many of them—at the moment, which, of course, will mean that if the Canal stays closed much longer the need for it will be a good deal less. I have no doubt that the United Arab Republic has this thought in its mind.

Sir Knox Cunningham

Can the right hon. Gentleman say when we are likely to get our ships out of the Suez Canal—in 1969, or will it be 1970?

Mr. Brown

With great respect, that is a question which the hon. and learned Gentleman must realise I cannot answer. I shall get the vessels out as soon as I possibly can. There are 15 ships in the Canal, so other people are also concerned with this. Indeed, there are a lot of other interests in it. We shall all get them out as soon as we can. Meantime, it may help the hon. and learned Gentleman to know that the crews are being well taken care of, that replacements are occurring as required, that there are no problems any longer about provisioning them, and that I have just received from them my Great Bitter Lakes tie as a member of the club.