HC Deb 20 July 1960 vol 627 cc48-9W
72. Sir A. Hurd

asked the Minister of Defence if he will publish the evidence of the recent activities of Russian trawlers engaged in electronic survey work in the North Sea and round the coasts of Great Britain.

Mr. Watkinson

Russian trawler fleets are constantly at sea in close proximity to our own territorial waters and we know that many of the trawlers are fitted with electronic and technical equipment required to intercept radio transmissions in this country The frequent appearance of Russian trawlers in areas where naval exercises are being conducted or in waters where Western military research activity is being carried out, suggests that the Soviet Union are carrying out intensive intelligence-gathering operations.

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