§ Mr. Roperasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action he has taken or proposes to take following the passage of the aircraft carrier "Kiev" through the Bosphorus in breach of the Montreux convention.
§ Mr. HattersleyWe have been in touch with a number of our Allies about the "Kiev" both in advance of its passage and since. The Russians describe the "Kiev" not as an aircraft carrier but as an anti-submarine cruiser. The Turkish Government who are responsible for supervising the execution of the provisions of the Convention relating to the transit of warships, accepted the "Kiev" for transit on the basis of the description notified by the Soviet authorities. The "Kiev" does not fit neatly into any of the classes of ship defined by the Convention. There is little doubt, however, that it meets the definition of8W aircraft carriers annexed to the Convention, which refers to ships designed or adapted primarily for the purpose of carrying and operating aircraft at sea. Although I regret that the Russians should have sought passage for the ship through the straits in this way, in these circumstances, a formal objection to the "Kiev's" transit would not, in our view, have been appropriate. Her Majesty's Government are in any case only one of nine parties to the Convention.